


Everyone Knew Eventually

by SoraHoshi



Category: DC Animated Universe, DCU, DCU (Comics)
Genre: Batfamily Feels, Drugs, Explicit Sexual Content, Holiday, Identity Porn, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-28
Updated: 2017-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-20 00:31:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 29,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11324922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SoraHoshi/pseuds/SoraHoshi
Summary: It took a little indirect help from a couple of embarrassing incidents, his ex, and his best friend’s son.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> See the Art for [Chapters 3 and 6](http://archiveofourown.org/works/11326410) (They contain spoilers.)
> 
> A big thank you to my artist, [Roscuro](https://roscuro69.tumblr.com/). Your art is amazing! Thank you so much for choosing my fic! And another big thank you to my two betas, [queen---queer](http://queen---queer.tumblr.com/) and [missigma](https://archiveofourown.org/users/missigma/pseuds/missigma). You guys helped me so much throughout this process. Thank you for being flexible and honest.
> 
> I’ve never participated in a Big Bang before and I’m excited I had the opportunity to be a part of this one. The fic was originally supposed to be 14-16k but I may have gotten carried away... I enjoy expanding... I still want to expand... (Not continue, expand. There’s a difference.)
> 
> Enjoy the fic and the art to go along with it!

Typically, interviews with Lois took either a very long time or were hurriedly cut off when someone realized what they were dealing with. The three-minute interviews happened less and less as she improved her tactics. However, Perry seemed to think that Clark playing “good cop” every once in a while was important for getting as much information as possible from interviewees. So here they were, some of Steve Lombard’s old teammates sitting in front of them, who retired not too long after he left the team. It was exciting to be able to talk to old stars, the great football players of Clark’s early years at the Planet.

Normally Lois and Clark wouldn’t be assigned to a sports piece. Their focus was always the exciting, the dramatic, what’s happening now kind of media. Clark used to work in sports, but it had been years since he professionally broached the topic. The only reason Lois was addressing a football team was because she needed the information as a junction to a story she was working on. And the men from the team knew that if Lois was involved, they could easily demand to see Clark. After all, it’s been-

“A damn long time, Clark.”

“Too long.” Clark shook hands with each of the men and sat down in a cushioned wood chair next to Lois. Clark became close to the men since he started writing for the Planet. His interest in football never faded after high school and he sought out the opportunity to meet these men in their prime.

“How have you been? I see your name pop up all over the news. You’re practically a celebrity!”

Clark laughed at his old friend’s exclamation, “I never thought the day would come when one of you tells me that. Maybe you should give the interview, Jay.”

The boys laughed and Lois smiled, letting them have their moment to settle before jumping into the conversation as quickly as possible. She had a feeling Clark would have no problem taking his time with this one and while she would love for him to be able to catch up with some old friends, they were on the clock. Reporting wasn’t a leisurely job; they had appointments to get to and deadlines to meet. Thankfully Clark noticed her slight change in the direction of conversation and nodded, letting her take the lead. This wasn’t his story after all.

“Glad you boys are having a good time in the retired life,” Lois said after a few questions about what that was like and if they missed playing. She then steered onto the meat of the interview, “What do you think of the boys who took your places?”

“They’re good kids.” One of the men responded. Lois waited a beat for more but nothing came. Hesitation. _Perfect. _It was time for her to chip away those defenses.__

____

__

“Surely you’ve been keeping up with them. Watching the games, hearing the news reports…”

There was an awkward cough from one of the men while some of the others avoided direct eye contact with Lois. She allowed herself a small satisfied smile as she observed their shuffling. They were getting nervous. They didn’t want to say anything bad about their old team, but everyone knew that something strange was going on. Sure, Luthor sponsored a lot of sports teams, he had Metropolis pride and supported the Meteors, but this was different. Something changed with his newest sponsorship and there were murmurs of illegal activity. Nothing concrete, no one had even created a single popular rumor yet, but Lois was determined to spread the truth before it came to that. She glanced at Clark with a polite smile on her face, letting him know that he was welcome to ask questions of his own. After all, he was there to keep the tension as low as possible.

_However, it was impossible to keep the tension low when there was a frown on your face. Lois quickly realized there was an emergency when Clark’s hand twitched into a loose fist and he sat a little straighter. _Horrible timing, Smallville, honestly._ He made a show of pulling out his phone and wincing._

“Sorry, sorry, I’ll be right back. It’s Perry. He’ll have my head if I don’t answer this. Excuse me.” Clark stood and smoothly pressed his fingers to his ear, pretending to scratch his face when he said, “I’ll be with you shortly.”

Lois’ face fell before she reminded herself where she was. Talking into his ear meant League business, which meant Clark couldn’t postpone leaving. It also meant she had to do this alone. She had to play both the good cop and the bad cop while dealing with snubbed questions from the men. The only reason they were here anyways was because of Clark and now he was leaving. So soon he couldn’t even stay afterwards for a beer or two, which they were probably expecting. Clark probably even cleared his schedule specifically because he suspected that would happen.

Clark popped back into the room a few minutes later to a very quiet and awkward atmosphere. And he was about to make it worse. Giving a bashful laugh, Clark rubbed the back of his neck as he apologized, shaking the hands of the retired football players.

“I’m sorry, guys, but I have to fly off.” Lois rolled her eyes at Clark’s choice of words. “Let’s have an off the record meeting next time. Give me a call sometime tomorrow.” Clark smiled tightly, glad that the men at least looked understanding of his busy job. Dreading this next part, he turned to Lois, the look in her eyes murderous behind the polite smile on her face. “I’ll see you at the office, Lois. Don’t be too hard on my boys, okay?” The hit at their age and the nervous laughter didn’t seem to ease much of the tension in the room. Clark gave one last smile and practically flew out the door.

“Damn it, J’onn,” Clark said into his comm link as his cape fluttered against the wind, “This better be important.”

“I promise you, Superman,” was the patient but worried response, “It is urgent.”

  


Bruce crouched atop a low building across the street from a small bank in Gotham. A large gargoyle that looked like a cross between a bird and a bat stood high over his head. Too bad for the thieves, it was a slow night which led him to stop this pettier-than-his-usual crime. He left the criminals tied up on the sidewalk and watched from afar as they were arrested. He stayed low, not even twitching when he felt a presence behind him.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, not sure if it was Clark, Hal, or some other flying pest that didn’t belong in his city.

“You speak as if you wish not to see me,” a female voice said.

“Wonder Woman.” Bruce stood and turned to face her as the cops drove away with the criminals. “What are you doing here?” he asked with less aggression, though it was hard to tell with his gravelly voice.

She gave a small smile in return for his change in demeanor. With all that they’d been through over the years, she was glad Bruce had came to be more open with her. With fighting side by side countless times for both of their homes and with the more recent engagements they’d been having, she would have hoped they’ve become close enough for Bruce to be less tight lipped.

“I’m not here to see Batman, I’m here to visit with someone else.”

Bruce considered her. It’d been a while since they fooled around, but he was on duty. However, it was a slow night and Dick was also currently patrolling the other side of town. Bruce could just call and tell him to extend his perimeter. Of course, Bruce would receive a snarky comment about “ _getting some,_ ” but he’d be more relaxed if he knew for sure the city was being properly watched. It was a little too quiet, almost like someone was waiting for the right moment to ruin the silence that Gotham never had.

A slow glide forward and Bruce’s lips were a breath away from Diana’s. Getting ready to extend an invitation back to his place, Bruce looked Diana in the eyes, not letting his gaze stray any lower. Their lips were almost brushing, small smiles on their faces, mouths barely open. The crisp night air a sweet contrast to the warm exhales against their skin. Bruce’s hand rose to caress Diana’s face, allowing himself a firmer touch to be able to feel her through the glove. Their lips--now barely brushing--did not move. The two didn’t stop looking into one another’s eyes. And of course, the moment was ruined by a beep in Diana’s ear and another in Bruce’s a few seconds later, both relaying the same message, “Come to the tower. Now.”

With a frown from Bruce and a small smirk in response to his disappointment from Diana, the two stood still until they were teleported to the Watchtower. It was time to get back to work.

❖❖❖

Bruce strode into the control room, Diana not far behind. With a barely concealed frown on his face, Bruce walked up to the two aliens in the room. J’onn faced the monitors, scrolling through an article that seemed to be in another language. Glancing at Clark, Bruce saw the man rubbing the bridge of his nose while clenching and unclenching his other hand. Bruce watched Clark’s hand as he asked, “What happened?”

“Luthor,” Clark stated through clenched teeth.

Upon closer inspection, Bruce realized what was pulled up on one of the screens was a Japanese news site. A pharmaceutical lab was missing their shipment of the newest tech. They had ordered it from a company that offered to send a prototype for testing. The tech was not fully developed yet and might cause inaccuracies when creating medicine. So, it was only sent to specific labs that were prepared to take the necessary precautions.

“The lab was supposed to provide feedback, however the prototypes were stolen before they reached their destination,” Bruce translated, “Authorities suspect that the equipment was taken by a competing company-”

“It was taken by Lex Luthor,” Clark interrupted.

Bruce held back from snapping at Clark. It was so irritating dealing with him when Lex was involved. The irrational anger had caused them problems on multiple occasions. Yes, Lex was Clark’s territory, but he constantly affected way more than little Metropolis.

A screen next to the article showed shots of Lex shaking hands with an ex-employee from S.T.A.R. labs. It looked like Dr. Hamilton’s old assistant. He quit a few months after the doctor left so that he could open his own laboratory. Reports said that he tried a few times but was never able to get the necessary funding. The man ended up settling for working in confined spaces with minimal disinfectants and no decent machinery or vital equipment. He wanted to be an outside source to S.T.A.R. labs that was even more disconnected from any government officials or the Justice League. It was apparent now that he found his funding, though just how disconnected said funding was, was questionable.

“I went to the facility they claimed to be working in,” Clark said, “It didn’t seem like anything unusual was happening. But I have a feeling there’s a lower level lined with lead.”

“Of course there is,” Bruce stated matter-of-factly, “You shouldn’t even have gone without backup.”

Clark gave him a look of incredulity. “Are you telling me I should never handle Lex by myself because he has one tiny piece of kryptonite that was probably nowhere near the facility because he carries it around everywhere like the paranoid lunatic he is?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t give me that.” Clark was pissed. He could handle Lex. And if he couldn’t, he asked for help. That’s why they were all here now. “What gives you the right to-”

“You could have been hurt, Clark,” Bruce interrupted. “He knows how to handle you because you’re easy to handle when it comes to him. He knows he ticks you off, which is dangerous in and of itself, but he also knows your weaknesses, which makes him an even bigger threat. You should have called for backup.”

Clark took a breath to stop himself from yelling at Bruce. That would only make the situation worse and prove Bruce right in the process. He’d control his temper for now and then go break something at the fortress when he got the chance. He knew he needed Bruce, but right now he wished J’onn had only called Diana up. That wouldn’t have gone over well with Bruce in the long run, because while Diana knew strategy, she didn’t know technology. It would’ve been idiotic to be that petty. But at this moment, Clark didn’t care.

“You think you can handle Lex better than me?” Clark crossed his arms.

“When you’re acting like this, yes.”

Clark huffed, moving his arms to his sides and clenching his fists. Bruce glanced at them and his eyes narrowed. They needed to calm down. It wasn’t the time to be having this argument. They could do that in between missions. Or maybe not at all.

Bruce had had enough. Clark needed to stop being so childish when it came to Lex Luthor. This was about team safety. Not territory. Gotham belonged to Batman, however if Poison Ivy ever got the upper hand on him and actually started turning the country into her own personal jungle, he’d let Clark know. Importing illegal technology from another country was absolutely not a Metropolis problem. Especially if said person knew how to deflect Superman’s abilities.

Clark stalked up to his best friend. “Then prove it,” he said slowly. Bruce’s narrowed eyes didn’t twitch as he stared Clark down.

The double doors behind them suddenly opened and in marched a bright green Hal Jordan. He seemed to be in an extra good mood today, practically bouncing into the room. With one look at the tense faces, his grin became a pout. “Aww, are Mommy and Daddy fighting again?”

Bruce turned to him with a scolding, “Hal.”

Hal raised his brows. Daddy-dearest usually ignored him in favor of either yelling at Mommy some more or storming out of the room, so the attention was a bit unexpected. It looked like whatever they were arguing about didn’t concern him however, so he smartly strolled towards J’onn to figure out what he was called in for.

“I’m sure Oa has contacted you about the Zamarons. Diana will accompany you,” J’onn said to Hal. Zamarons were a race of females used to being without men until they worked with and decided to join forces with a group of men. Together, they created Oa.

Apparently, Diana would not be accompanying Bruce and Clark. _Great._ The two of them had to work things out without a buffer. As entertaining as that would be to see, Hal decided him and the princess should get a move on. Thankfully, she agreed. They needed to leave the planet before the _bat_ annoyed the _super_ too much. Or vice-versa.

Bruce walked after the pair before the doors even closed.

“Where are you going?” Clark’s voice hitched in annoyance.

Bruce took a calming breath. It was as easy to get along with Clark as it was to argue with him. Working together should not be this difficult. How could one man affect him so much? It was frustrating working with a man who could bring you Ma’s pecan pie with a toothy grin that was completely genuine, who could also break bone by breathing in your direction hard enough.

“To the cave,” Bruce bit out. “I need to do research and figure out a plan.”

It was hard not to yell at Bruce. _Very_ hard. They both knew they were working on this case together, and Bruce was excellent at working with a team on the field. However, he was _only_ good at doing it on the field. People had to maneuver around his crazy schedule while dealing with his preferences when discussing strategy. Even going about doing research with the man could be taxing.

Clark followed him so they could both be teleported back to Earth. He might as well keep a close eye on Lex while waiting to see what Bruce could dig up. Bruce ignored Clark. Clark ignored Bruce. It was better that way. Maybe by the time they talked again, both of them would have cooled off.

❖❖❖

“Hey, Smallville,” said a sickly-sweet voice. Clark went cold. He felt so cold in that moment that he lifted his hand to his mouth to make sure he was breathing out the right temperature.

It wasn’t like he was late to work, but going out of your way to avoid Lois for as long as possible - especially if you were dating her - was not a good idea. Normally, it wasn’t a problem for Clark to just talk things out with her. It wasn’t like she was actually mad at him, she knew what his job entailed. It was just frustrating not being able to fully provide her with the promise she made to her clients. She wasn’t above manipulation, so getting information from interviewees wasn’t necessarily a problem. However, she wasn’t a bad person. She was a manipulative speaker for her job and for the truth, not a liar who makes promises she couldn’t keep. She had a reputation as an honest reporter and an honest person.

Wincing, Clark turned to his beautiful woman with a weak smile.

“Don’t give me that innocent look.” With a lower voice, “You have some explaining to do.”

They sat at Clark’s desk, close enough together that passersby wouldn’t overhear anything.

“Luthor’s up to something,” Clark said, “But it’s bigger than usual. I can’t deal with it alone.”

Lois took in his slightly put out expression and held back a laugh. “You’re going to be visiting Gotham a lot, aren’t you.” It wasn’t a question.

“If you’re not going to laugh, at least _try_ to hide the grin,” Clark grumbled.

She knew how close Clark was to Batman, but she also knew how much they argued. It was frustrating to have never met his best friend before, at least not as _himself_ , but she could live with it if she got to see Clark pout every once in a while. It was healthy to be able to disagree with friends. Not to mention the fact that seeing such a pathetic pout on Superman was one of the cutest and funniest things she was able to experience in life.

Work was slow. Lois was doing research on the football team. The interview the previous day confirmed her suspicions that there was something strange going on with the new team, however she didn’t get much more than that. It was best that she talked to the new team directly, which left Clark alone to fidget with no specific assignment.

__He texted Bruce an,_ Anything?_

_Soon._

__

__

_Should I stop by after work?_

By the end of the day, Clark not only barely had one half-assed article idea for Perry, but he also hadn’t heard anything else from Bruce. It was time to escape one grump by visiting another. He’d go to Bruce whether the man liked it or not. And he’d postpone Perry’s berading in the process.


	2. Chapter 2

Bruce wasn’t there.

Because of course he wasn’t. For the first time in months, Clark had to use his personal access to the cave to get in. He would’ve just used the front door and hung out with Alfred if he knew Bruce would be out. Though upon further inspection, it seemed Alfred wasn’t home either.

Brucie Wayne didn’t have plans tonight as far as the paparazzi knew and it was too early for Batman to patrol, so it was a little confusing as to where he might be. Maybe he took the boys out?

“What are _you_ doing here?”

_Or not._

That was weird. How did Clark not hear them arrive?

“Hi Clark. Bruce should be back soon.”

Apparently, Alfred was the one that took the boys out.

“Good to see you again, Master Clark. Shall I bring you a beverage?”

“No thanks, Alfred.” Clark sighed. “It’s good to see you too, though. It’s been a while.”

The cave felt much smaller all of a sudden. Two Robins took up a lot of room. Particularly when Damian wouldn’t stop giving him the stink eye. It was like the boy thought he could will Clark away with the sheer force of his glare. Clark was really glad he couldn’t read minds. Damian was a cute kid, but it was hard to like him when all he did was murder you over and over again in his mind. At least that was what Clark imagined the kid was thinking about when he was around. Alfred soon ushered the boys back upstairs to help him make dinner, thankfully. Damian’s presence would only make Clark more anxious.

Hopefully, Bruce had cooled down by now, but it was possible he was just as angry as earlier and was going to do everything in his power during this mission to show Clark exactly how he felt about Clark’s earlier actions. Here’s to hoping in the power of time and distance; always a risk factor in calculating Bruce’s feelings.

“What are you doing here?”

Well, it was better than the way Damian said it. Clark swiveled around in Bruce’s chair to face the man himself. He was in black slacks, a light blue button down, and a dark blazer. So he was out, just not on Batman business. What was he doing? Bruce didn’t just leave the house as Bruce Wayne for no reason. It would be such a hassle to avoid paparazzi. Maybe he had a meeting for Wayne Enterprises.

“Hello to you too.”

Bruce quirked a brow, eyes sweeping over Clark’s Superman attire.

“I sent you a text. You never responded.” Clark stood and moved to hover next to the chair as Bruce sat down, his blazer now resting on the back of the chair.

“I told you, ‘Soon.’”

“It’s soon.”

“You shouldn’t be texting me anyway.”

“I thought these phones were secure.”

“Clark.” Bruce sounded exasperated. After a beat, he asked, “Has Lex done anything?”

Clark shook his head. He took frequent breaks today, heading outside under the guise that he was looking for a story. He didn’t exactly tail Lex, but he did keep tabs on the man. Apparently, today was a paperwork day because Lex didn’t go anywhere near the lab. Lex’s day consisted of office work and the occasional meeting which were the only times he left his office. It was disappointing, but probably a good thing. Who knew what he would’ve been doing if he went down to the lab.

The giant screens in the cave turned on and Bruce’s fingers clicked away at the keyboard. Clark watched those fingers glide. He found his gaze moving up the arm of his friend. The sky-blue button down strained against the broad chest and thick arms. He swallowed. Finally, his eyes found themselves resting on Bruce’s face. The man’s eyes were focused, never glancing away from the screens. His lips were set in a neutral frown, now in Batman mode. Realizing he was staring, Clark cleared his throat and turned to look at what was probably new information Bruce was trying to show him.

After some discussion and pleasantly little argument, they had a plan. They’d break into the lab and get samples of whatever was being produced. It was their only option. They’d do it tonight.

“Will you be staying for dinner, Master Clark?”

Clark looked at Alfred with an uncomfortable smile, “I don’t want to intrude.” He didn’t mind eating with them on the occasions when it happened, but Clark felt like he’d be pushing it if he spent more time than necessary with Bruce right now.

“I insist.”

“Alfred, don’t badger him. I’ll be missing dinner. We have work to do,” Bruce interjected.

Alfred turned to Bruce with a stern frown on his face. He was expecting that answer but that didn’t mean he had to like it. “Sir, you cannot skip dinner just because Master Dick is coming.”

Bruce almost scowled. “I’m not. We’re going to the lab. It’s best to go tonight when we’re confident Luthor won’t be there.”

The exchange was more startling than anything else. Clark had seen the two argue before, but never with such an uncomfortable atmosphere. It was as if Bruce didn’t want to admit that Alfred was right. It was common for the two to have disagreements, however their banter within the disagreements was practiced and easy. Sometimes the banter wasn’t even there and Alfred accepted Bruce wouldn’t listen. The idea of more drawn out arguments that made Bruce visibly uncomfortable was not only rare, but Clark had never even entertained the thought of them happening before. It wasn’t even unusual that Bruce was avoiding confrontation in favor of doing work, but this?

“You’re avoiding Dick?” Of course Clark ended up blurting that out. It was the most surprising thing about the situation. How could Bruce not be able speak to his eldest and most reasonable child? Anyone who had trouble talking to Dick needed therapy because as far as Clark could tell, Dick was one of the easiest people in the world to have a conversation with. Sure, Bruce could be tough to take, but Dick was an adult. The two disagreed and fought as often as any father and son; the weird part was that they’d never avoided each other before.

“I’m not avoiding him.” Bruce said through clenched teeth.

Alfred snorted into his hand, quickly turning the sound into a fit of coughs. Clark barely restrained his own awkward cough at the purposely bad coverup from Alfred. “I don’t have my civilian clothes with me, so I can join you all another time,” he said. Bruce seemed to visibly relax at the comment.

\- Until Alfred pulled out a pair of jeans and button down from seemingly nowhere. “Or,” Clark continued, “I can borrow some of Bruce’s clothes.” Clark awkwardly took the hangers, though he didn’t leave right away, looking to Bruce for reassurance. He didn’t want to argue with Alfred but if him being there made the situation worse…

“What are you waiting for?” Bruce snapped, finally assenting to Alfred’s will. They weren’t going out till nightfall, anyway. Why not eat together?

❖❖❖

Dinner was awkward, to say the least. Knives scraped across plates, forks clinked against ceramic. The room was filled with lovely smells of lasagna and mixed vegetables. Alfred had something to attend to later so he ate earlier. Not much was said except between Tim and Clark. Tim was clearly excited by the extra guest. Dick tried to engage in the conversation too, since he saw Clark even less often. The problem was that he wasn’t used to ignoring his dad.

Clark avoided eye contact with Damian and glanced at Bruce every once in a while. The man was tucked into his food, looking nowhere but his plate. Damian engaged him in some words. Literally. Bruce said like three words. No one else at the table attempted to make conversation. Dick usually asked his brothers how school was going. Then he’d sometimes ask about training and they’d all try and jump from the table to go at it or show Dick how their “ass kicking” had improved.

The silent pauses stretched longer and longer as dinner went on. What could have happened to make Bruce so angry? He’d normally just talk to the child who did something wrong. Clark had never been surprised by Bruce’s behavior, so the dismissive grunts were unnerving instead of annoying like they usually were. Enough was enough. Curiosity was going to kill the Kryptonian.

Leaning closer to Bruce, Clark whispered, “Why are you two fighting?” Clark’s eyes quickly widened at Bruce’s sudden elevated heartbeat. He was usually amazing at controlling his body’s automatic responses. Clark watched Bruce pause before his next bite, heard him let out a startled breath at the question, then listened as the heart slowed down again.

Damn him, why did he have to control everything?

Dick shifted uncomfortably in his seat, glancing at Clark, his dad, then quickly back to his food. His face seemed suddenly flushed. He swallowed and made a fist around the fork in his hand as if trying to prevent himself from fiddling with it. The poor guy definitely wanted to leave as soon as possible.

“Bruce, don’t ignore me. You know I heard that.”

Bruce scowled at the audacity of Clark to listen to his body’s responses. So he got up and left the table without a word even to his kids.

His heart was beating rapidly again, but Bruce didn’t seem to be trying to stop it this time. He just continued to walk away. Privacy wasn’t more important to anyone than Bruce but this was going a bit far. Not wanting to get along with your son was just childish.

“Alright, Dick, what happened?” The moment Bruce was out of earshot, Clark had to ask. If they weren’t going to solve this problem themselves, he would.

“You really don’t want to know, Clark.”

Clark raised a skeptical, demanding brow.

“No, really!” Dick looked almost panicked before his shoulders gave a defeated slouch. “You should ask him about it, there’s no way he’d want me to tell you. It’s too…”

This time Dick was the one with the elevated heartbeat. The only difference was the flush from earlier worsened.

“‘Too’ what?” Clark asked.

By this point he was just frustrated. That was when it hit him. Dick hadn’t seemed angry this entire night. In fact, he hadn’t even looked in Bruce’s direction since they entered the same vicinity. That flush on his face wasn’t from being upset with Bruce, he was embarrassed. And if _Dick_ was embarrassed… No wonder Bruce was so angry. Embarrassment was not an emotion Bruce knew how to deal with. What on earth would Bruce have done to embarrass his poor kid?

Clark stood suddenly. His face was set in a determined frown as he followed after Bruce. There was no way he’d let Bruce get away with embarrassing his own son and not having the decency to even try to apologize to him. Normally, it was standard behavior to avoid interfering in the raising of anyone else’s kids. However Dick was an adult and Clark cared about him too.

A hand grabbed at Bruce’s shoulder, shoving him around to face Clark. Bruce looked up to see a furious face. Bruce didn’t even get a moment to process it or why it would exist in the first place before Clark started reaming him.

“I don’t know what happened between you and Dick but you two need to talk about this. He’s clearly upset.”

“This is none of your business,” Bruce said.

“It is if you don’t even know how to apologize to your own son. How can yo-”

“Always jumping to conclusions without all the facts. This is why Luthor always gets the better of you.” Bruce jumped from confusion straight to annoyance.

It didn’t help Clark’s anger simmer down any. Challenging the Kryptonian on Lex Luthor was never a pleasant idea. And it certainly wasn’t a smart move in this particular case. Or necessary, as Clark pointed out.

“-what even happened?” Clark finally asked. Again.

Bruce let a hand sweep over his face as he looked off to the side. That was when Clark saw it. The slight pink tint to Bruce’s cheeks. And it was… adorable. Wow, since when was Bruce adorable? It didn’t matter anymore what Bruce said at this point because it was clear that Clark had really jumped to conclusions. Listening again to the quick thump of his friend’s heart, Clark had a second moment of realization of his misinterpretation. Of course Bruce was angry. That was probably the only way he knew how to respond to his own embarrassment.

Whatever happened between the two made them both not want to confront the issue. Which wasn’t healthy. So no matter what it was, Clark would make sure they talked. Even if the two of them ended up with permanent tomatoes for heads. They’d just have to learn to be adults like the rest of the world and confront uncomfortable social situations.

“Look,” Bruce sighed, “Dick caught me in an awkward position a few weeks ago.” Clark gave a confused tilt to his head. “He came over a day earlier than expected and knocked on my bedroom door. He didn’t hear a response and wanted to leave some documents where I’d see them when I got in that night.

“But I was already in. And he’d already opened the door.”

“He caught you having sex?” Clark didn’t understand why that would be such a big issue. “Haven’t all your kids caught you like that by now?” Clark asked. Honestly, with how often Selina and Bruce fooled around, it would be surprising if they didn’t at least know what Bruce’s backside looked like, poor kids.

“No! He caught me-” Bruce cut himself off, embarrassed by the words. With a softer, more controlled voice, he said, “He caught me watching porn.”

Clark’s shock lasted less than two full seconds until he suddenly burst into an almost boisterous laughter. Tears came to his eyes as he had to lean against the wall. Bruce stood staring, annoyed as Clark came apart on the floor. Sex was one thing, but masturbation was personal in a different way. It was understandable why neither Dick or Bruce wanted to talk about it. This was one of those things that would take time. Maybe more time than with most parents.

“Are you done?” Bruce asked through his teeth.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Clark said between his final chuckles. “ _Rao_ , don’t scare me like that. Let’s go get ready for the mission.” Clark put a comforting pat on Bruce’s shoulder then headed down to the cave still chuckling softly to himself.

“I can hear you, you know.” Clark could swear he heard a pout in the big bad bat’s grumbles.

The information gathering wasn’t too successful. The most they deciphered was that Luthor was being extremely meticulous with covering his tracks. The machines in the underground lab weren’t the ones stolen and they weren’t being used on any illegal substances. Clark zoomed around the lab searching for any sign of illegal activity. By the end of the night, he was out of breath from the exhaustion of being so frustrated. They knew he was planning something, but for now they had no way to prove it. For most of the country, Luthor appeared to be cooperating with a genius scientist to create new projects that would help medicine progress. Who would try to stop that?


	3. Chapter 3

It was early afternoon and Bruce’s bed was a little warmer than it should’ve been that time of day. He had his arms wrapped around a black-haired goddess, shaking and letting out a quiet groan as his muscles tensed and then relaxed. The woman in his lap kissed Bruce’s forehead sweetly and moved to lay next to him. They both allowed their breathing to calm as they relaxed in the large bed.

“Something is bothering you,” she said finally.

Bruce didn’t say anything until she took his hand in hers. “Has Clark not said anything about Lex Luthor yet?”

It’d been weeks since they broke into the laboratory and both Clark and Bruce were getting impatient. Neither of them had found out anything about Luthor’s plans yet. This of course meant more time fighting other villains or pettier crimes, but it also meant less time spent with each other. Despite the initial argument when finding out about the mission, they both enjoyed spending time together so they always noticed when it’d been a while.

“No.” Bruce let his eyes wander along her frame. Her nipples were still hardened from their previous activities and he could still smell her on his hand.

“Ready for round two?” She smirked at his wandering eyes.

Bruce let himself give a quiet laugh. “Maybe later. You’re a workout, Diana.”

She laughed and kissed him softly on the cheek. Being with Bruce was definitely complicated, but they were both superheros. They knew what they were getting into. The flirting came naturally, as did that first night together. Diana just didn’t realize exactly how complicated the relationship would be until that morning after when they met up with Superman for a mission. Bruce’s gaze lingered too long, and Diana noticed.

“You’ve been distracted for weeks now. If you wish to part ways, I’ve told you before to-”

“That’s not it,” Bruce said.

“Did Clark upset you?”

Bruce glanced at Diana and said nothing.

Clark always upset Bruce. But he was also his best friend. Diana knew she couldn’t compete with someone so easily able to bring a smile to Bruce’s face. The moment she knew Bruce’s true feelings, her and Bruce’s relationship was set. It was casual from the beginning and gained even more solidity in that definition when Bruce’s feelings were clear.

The sheets rustled as Diana started to get dressed. Bruce stood and put on his robe, watching her slip on her dark pencil skirt and white button down. She walked up to him and let her eyes fall shut as she kissed him softly. He brought his hands to her waist and tilted his head to move his lips against hers.

Watching her leave the bedroom every time they slept together gave Bruce a feeling of appreciation of her ass, genuine fondness, and a gratefulness of her companionship.

❖❖❖

Back at the Daily Planet, Clark was fiddling with a pen and staring at a document on his computer screen. The article was about halfway finished. It was a short piece on-

“The downtown art gala on New Modern Art? Really Smallville, you can do better than that.”

Clark’s mouth quirked into a smiled and he raised a brow in challenge. “Yeah, well, Perry approved it.”

“Why?” Lois was genuinely shocked. Such a topic was never Clark’s department. Sure, he branched out every now and then, but Clark didn’t know anything about art. Maybe Rose was out sick. Maybe she was dying. Perry would never let anyone else write a piece on a big art gala.

“She’s not dying,” Clark laughed, “But she is out sick. I offered to be her feet. She’ll finish the rest tomorrow.”

Lois let out a dramatic sigh of relief which Clark wasn’t properly insulted by. He could write a good article on any topic Perry assigned and would normally argue the point. But today, he was in too good a mood to be baited by Lois.

“What’s going on? Haven’t seen you smile like that in a while.” Lois guessed he figured things out with Luthor.

“Just can’t wait to get off work.” He gave her a wink and went back to his half-assed article.

When Lois finally left him, he opened his desk drawer. Yes, he’d been out inspecting pieces of art and briefly interviewing local small-time artists, but he also stopped by a couple shops. As last minute as it was, he had to run a few quick errands. Inside Clark’s drawer were two small packages that were about the same size and wrapped in red wrapping paper. They had white ribbons across their centers with cards hanging from them, each with a short name written in silver cursive.

Clark hurried out the office as soon as Perry let him off the hook on the pretense that he had Valentine’s Day plans with Lois. Normally the puppy dog eyes wouldn’t work, but Perry knew Clark wasn’t working on a big story. He made Clark promise he’d find a great lead tomorrow. Or rather, he threatened to fire him. Clark responded with a relieved thanks, then left quickly before Perry changed his mind.

Having to prepare for plans with Lois wasn’t really a lie, but Clark may have left earlier than he had to for that particular excuse. He was running as fast as he could pass for human to make it to the post office before they closed.

“Hey,” Clark pretended to pant. “Mailing a small package.”

“Right here” the woman indicated the scale in front of her.

Both red boxes slipped out of his hands onto the counter. Clark frowned and quickly flipped open the cards. He didn’t have time for this. Getting home as soon as possible was a priority. He may have super speed but cooking would always just take the time it took to cook. His phone rang just as he was about to shove the right box forward. The screen said Lois was calling so he answered right away, almost forgetting what he was asked. He glanced at the impatient woman’s face and gave a sheepish smile as he greeted Lois. It would be a good night once this quick errand was out of the way.

“I’ll be on my way home soon, thought I’d give you a heads up,” Lois said.

Clark actually cursed which made Lois laugh. The poor man was trying his hardest to plan the perfect evening. For some reason, every time Clark’s tried to make a home cooked romantic dinner for Lois, he’d had to leave abruptly. They’d had uninterrupted evenings out or more casual ones at home, but this time he hoped they could have an emergency free night together in private.

Pushing one box forward, Clark pocketed the other, left a few bills on the counter and almost flew back home. It was time to cook.

The dinner table had a white cloth draped over it and a vase filled with two roses and two sprigs of rosemary as the center piece. Two cream colored candles dripped wax onto their thin faux silver stands. They complemented the dim electric lighting Clark had spent hours figuring out how to set up a week before. Two glasses were set next to a bucket of ice holding an expensive wine that Clark had never had before. Bruce recommended it. The smell of paprika, cumin, and cooked red peppers and onions mixed in with the scent of the simmering beef in the air. The vegetables and mashed potatoes were already on the plates and sitting under a heat lamp.

When Clark heard Lois get on the elevator to head to their floor, he smiled and quickly turned off the stove. The door opened just as Clark placed the full plates on the table. Lois hummed at the lovely aroma of food and smiled at the beautiful table and her handsome boyfriend holding out his hand.

He took her hand in his and kissed the top of it, pulling lightly to guide her into her seat.

“You really outdid yourself this time, Smallville.” Lois’ voice was soft and fond. Clark’s eyes sparkled and couldn’t stop staring into hers.

It was quiet and peaceful in the room, an unusual setting for their romantic dinners. Clark’s head suddenly snapped up. It was almost as if he was panicking.

Lois sighed, “It’s fine. We both knew it would happen.” She resigned herself to being interrupted by a super emergency.

“What?” Clark was confused. “Oh, no,” he laughed. “I just forgot something.”

In a blink, Clark flickered in his place and suddenly music flowed through the small apartment. It was a soft melody and the first song they heard on their first Valentine’s day together. The song made Lois get up to kiss Clark before moving back to her seat. She wanted some lovin’ but there was no way she was going to miss a home cooked steak by the son of Martha Kent.

It was a smart move, really, sitting back down to eat. The food was delicious. And the pie was the cherry to her triple high stacked four topping two banana fudge sundae special of a meal. It was especially good because Clark never forgot the details. Pecan pie was one of her favorites and a known Martha Kent specialty. Lois would remember to thank Martha later.

Right when Lois was about to head to the restroom to freshen up, Clark stopped her. He took out the red box and placed it on the table.

“I thought we said no presents, farm boy.”

“Come on, you knew I’d never listen to that,” Clark said cheekily.

With pursed lips that were pushing back a smile Clark could totally tell was there, Lois unwrapped the box. The wrapping paper was plain, but it was glossy and beautiful. She felt the need to be careful not to rip it too much. When she took the lid off of the box, her eyebrows wrinkled.

“Uuh, thanks Clark… It’s… old?”

“Huh?” Clark got out of his seat to take a look inside the box. His face paled. “Oh no, that was Br-Batman’s.”

“Batman’s?” Lois was shocked. Of course she knew how close the two were, but Clark got him a Valentine’s Day gift? Even friends didn’t do that as children. They got each other stupid cards with silly cartoons on them. What kind of gift did Clark feel the need to give to Bruce on Valentine’s Day?

She lifted the book from its wrappings. Her fingers gently ran over the gold foreign lettering. It was in Arabic.

“What is this?” Lois asked.

“Just something he’s wanted for a long time,” Clark said dismissive and frantic. “I’m so sorry Lois. I can’t believe the boxes got mixed up.”

Lois shrugged. “It’s no problem. Where’s my gift?”

That’s when the night really started going wrong. She’d felt it, the moment the word “Batman” left Clark’s lips. But it wasn’t a surefire hell night until he said, “On priority mail to his house.”

Because of course it was. Lois almost laughed. The gift wasn’t important to her at all. And of course, the whole mix up was a complete mistake. This was farm boy here, the most innocent man in the world, if it wasn’t for beating up bad guys on the daily. The problem was that Batman was involved.

“Well can you at least tell me what my gift was supposed to be?”

Clark could tell Lois was irritated and Lois could tell he felt guilty.

Without missing a beat, Clark said, “That really sexy, overpriced bright red lingerie you’ve been wanting for months.” Clark was beet red, “It was supposed to be a joke because I know how firm you were this time about no gifts. So I thought I’d make you laugh and then we’d have some fun.”

That time Lois did laugh. The thought of lingerie on the way to the Batman’s house was honestly the funniest thing she’d heard in a long time. Hearing about his reaction to opening that box would be a great day. She took Clark by the tie and pulled him into the bedroom.

“I’ll forgive you for now, but you’ll have to work hard tonight.”

The next morning, Clark went into work looking very happy and Lois went in looking at ease. Clark got some shoulder pats, whistles, and congrats on the _very_ happy customer. They also may have whispered to him to do whatever he did last night more often because maybe it’d keep Lois off their backs. Clark laughed and replied that they didn’t know her at all if they thought that would change her work attitude, even today.

An alarm went off in Clark’s mind reminding him not to get fired, so he shooed everyone away and went out to do some research. Being Superman definitely gave him an advantage over other reporters. He was able to help out a few people and find a story on Superman literally saving a cat from a tree while apprehending three thieves that were stealing giant tubs of ice cream. It was definitely one for the books. And most importantly, it was one that would appease Perry.

_Bzz, bzz._

It was a good story, but finding something that would take him at least a week of research would be nice. He hadn’t had a good story like that in a couple weeks.

_Bzz, bzz._

Oh, a message from Bruce. How nice, Clark hasn’t heard from him in…

_Shit._

Clark hesitated, almost throwing his phone in his desk drawer and leaving it there for all of eternity. A deep breath did nothing to calm his nerves. After a quick glance around to make sure no one was close enough to notice him panicking, he opened the texts.

[10:06 am] _It’s a lovely color, though I’m not sure it’ll fit._

[10:15 am] _It doesn’t fit. Next time, order a size up._

Clark was mortified. Did Bruce really try it on? Of course not! Obviously it was for Lois and obviously she was smaller than him and obviously Bruce knew it was for her. Bruce was just being an ass. Right?

Clark’s hands started to shake and he had to rest the phone on his desk before he accidentally threw it into the building across the street.

Calling Bruce was out of the question. Normally, he’d always call Bruce to apologize about anything. He could easily leave the room and pretend he was on the phone with anyone and just explain very quickly what happened and how Bruce ended up with the wrong gift and it would be fine. But this time… This time Clark needed to never speak to Bruce again. He needed to not think about ever even seeing the man again.

When Clark finally had control over his fingers, he quickly typed out:

[10:21 am] _I AM SO SORRY BRUCE! YOU KNOW THAT WASN’T MEANT FOR YOU RIGHT? HOW CAN YOU JOKE ABOUT THINGS LIKE THAT WHAT IF THE KIDS FOUND IT? WHAT IF DAMIAN FOUND IT???_

The text continued on like that for a few more panicked sentences before Clark ended with,

[10:24 am] _I MEANT TO GIVE IT TO SOMEONE ELSE I’LL STOP BY TONIGHT TO PICK IT UP_

He didn’t read Bruce’s response.

It wasn’t easy to take his time, but Clark reached the manor in fifteen minutes. Purposely slowing his speeding abilities but still moving faster than anyone he knew besides Flash, was difficult. He was anxious. He decided to just go for the cave instead of the front door. He was in uniform after all. It would be strange to enter the manor as Superman.

Clark cleared his throat from the entrance of the cave. Bruce was in civilian clothing, but was typing away at his keyboard. And ignoring Clark. Irritating as that was, Clark couldn’t find it in himself to be mad. The whole situation was just so horrible actually saying words would take a lot of work, let alone being mad.

He cleared his throat again and said, “Bu-Bruce.”

With a look of dramatized surprise, Bruce turned around. “Hi Clark. I didn’t realize you were here.”

The asshole was enjoying this. Clark rolled his eyes. Bruce let Clark into the cave so yes, he did realize Clark’s presence. Always respectful of others, Clark would wait for Bruce to let him in unless it was an emergency or Bruce wasn’t there. He couldn’t exactly wait outside the entrance to the cave in a bright red cape after all. Bright red just wasn’t a good color for being in Gotham, as Bruce had pointed out on multiple occasions.

“I wanted to remind you,” Bruce said, “That bright red isn’t a good color for Gotham.”

It was hard to respond when Clark could actually feel how warm his face was. Bruce’s cheeky smirk didn’t help any. Or the fact that he decided it’d be a good idea to actually take out the garment in front of Clark and hold up like he was inspecting it.

“Bruce!” Clark sped over to the man and bunched up the cloth, shoving it back into the box.

Of course, the box was on Bruce’s lap so he said, “Wow there, didn’t think you’d be that excited. I don’t even have it on yet.”

“Okay, that’s it.” Dealing with Bruce when he was in a mood like this was difficult. Clark scowled and asked, “Do you want your actual gift or not?”

Bruce didn’t say a word, the smirk on his face finally gone. Good. It seemed the distraction worked.

Clark replaced the box on Bruce’s lap with its twin, to which Bruce said, “It’s been opened.”

Clark said a little frustratedly, not quite over his embarrassment, “Yeah well, I had to give Lois _something_ yesterday.”

Bruce opened the box with a small quirk of his lips. It was quickly turned into a look of surprise when he saw what was inside: the signed and autographed first edition of Shokat Al-Qua. He lifted it up and turned it over, inspecting it. The book felt fragile in his rough hands, even though it was in pretty good condition. He flipped through the pages and traced the bindings with his fingertips.

“It’s real,” he said.

Not quite believing it, Bruce opened the book to the first page and started reading. Clark waited patiently as Bruce concentrated on the text.

“Where did you find this?”

Clark shrugged when he said, “You’ve explained the history of it to me enough times for me to have an idea where to start looking. I know you hired someone but-”

Bruce allowed himself a smile when Clark said, “-you just needed an investigator with the right… abilities.”

“Thank you.”

Placing the book back in its safe bindings, Bruce stood. Sometimes Clark pissed him off, sometimes Clark warmed his heart, and sometimes he did both. Right now, he definitely did both.

Startled by Bruce’s sudden movement, Clark turned to lean back against the keyboard and give the man more room. However, Bruce stalked in closer, leaving barely enough space between them for their feet. He placed his hands on either side of Clark, forcing the man to lean back further. His eyebrows were furrowed as he stared directly at Clark. He considered the gesture, giving such a personal gift to his friend but not to his long-term girl.

_How is he straight?_ Bruce wondered, honestly. His frustration grew tenfold at the pink tint to Clark’s cheeks and the confused look to his face.

Clark was confused. Why the hell was Bruce so close? Their noses were almost touching. The man loved his personal space. Except when acting as Brucie, but that was different. This wasn’t that. He wasn’t pretending to be tipsy. No one was here to observe him acting tipsy. And Clark was his friend. Friends needed personal space.

Except the small part of Clark that felt very warm. He wanted Bruce to move, just not to move away. And for some reason neither one of them could speak. The cave was silent except for a few distant sounds of dewdrops slipping from their stalactites.

“Oh Clark, I didn’t realize you would be here.” Diana’s voice caused Bruce to back away and Clark to quickly pick up Lois’ box.

“Hey Diana. I was just heading out.” Clark was quick to make any excuse. Diana easily accepted it which made leaving simpler. He barely glanced at Bruce when he said goodbye and sped away.

Diana raised a brow at Bruce. She knew nothing happened, but there was no way she missed the position they were in. And despite his feelings for Clark, Bruce still had lines he wouldn’t cross while with Diana.

“You know nothing happened,” Bruce said. It was the first and only time either of them have ever directly acknowledged his feelings in any way.

❖❖❖

The apartment was quiet except for the clacks of Lois’ typing. With a sigh, Clark placed the box on the bed for Lois to open. When she saw it her face brightened. Quickly placing her laptop on the bedside table, she crawled forward to look inside the box. Despite knowing what they looked like, she still laughed when she saw them. Clark looked at her like she grew a second head.

“Oh c’mon, Smallville. You have to tell me what big bad Bats had to say about these.”

With a face plant into the sheets and groan, Clark said, “Hmplid’e trd’ehm’n.”

“What was that?”

Sadly, there was no escaping this conversation. Clark peeked up at his grinning girlfriend and finally pushed his face out of the covers enough to get out, “He implied trying them on-”

Lois laughed before he could finish.

“-and then he held them up to show me how they’re too small for him.”

Lois was red in the face from lack of oxygen and Clark was red in the face from her ridiculous outburst.

“It’s not that funny,” he pouted.

“J-just, I mean it’s Batman. Can you really picture Batman doing that?” Lois forced out in between her snickers.

Clark explained that the man wasn’t really Batman at the time to which Lois responded that it shouldn’t matter. From what Clark had told her about Bats, he was kind of the same person as Batman as he was in real life. And a man like that joking around about wearing lingerie that wasn’t supposed to be his is funny no matter what.

“Though the image of the man in the suit is much funnier than a regular man doing it, I guess,” Lois explained.

When she finally calmed down, she took the lace and silky fabric in her hands and opened her mouth to thank Clark. Instead what came out was, “What did he think of his actual gift?”

With a smile, Clark explained how he was surprised and very happy with it. He’d been looking for that particular book for years so it took quite a bit of time to find it. He even had to ask Nightwing for some help to make sure his dad never found out. Clark explained how he owed Nightwing some money and even though Nightwing refused, Clark was prepared to pay the guy back himself. He really owed him for helping him track down and get ahold of that book, especially doing it while being able to keep it a secret for how long it took them. Nothing went unnoticed by Batman.

“Wow, you even care about the kid, huh,” Lois said.

“Of course I do,” Clark said, “I can’t be friends with Batman without caring about his boys.”

“Of course…” Lois swallowed back the lump that appeared in her throat when she suddenly decided that it was time. “Listen, Clark…”


	4. Chapter 4

A week of no communication between Clark and anyone in the League wasn’t unusual. What was unusual was when he was finally called up to the tower for a meeting and he passively agreed to every suggestion, including ones from Batman. It wasn’t rare for them to agree persay, however it was common that they’d at least argue a bit first.

“Clark,” Bruce pulled Clark aside after the meeting ended. “You need to focus on your job. What’s got you so distracted?”

“Sorry.”

It was strange for Clark to take criticism from Bruce when it came to being a superhero. It almost disturbed Bruce more knowing that the man wasn’t going to argue with him. The guy didn’t even seem mildly irritated. What was wrong with him?

“Clark.” Bruce placed a hand on the slightly taller man’s shoulder, stopping him from walking away.

After a moment of shaking, Clark brought his hand up to rub his forehead. Bruce could hear the stuttered breaths, could hear the tears underneath the too-steady voice of, “She left.”

When Bruce realized what that meant, he held onto Clark’s shoulder more firmly. He could never have predicted that one. No one could have. Lois and Clark were one of the happiest, most stable couples he knew. They were what many would call the ideal couple. What could have possibly gone wrong?

Having Clark to go to the manor with him wasn’t difficult. Though, the night with a good friend certainly didn’t open any eyes on what went wrong. Bruce didn’t ask any prying questions, simply put on a movie and let Clark relax as much as he could. According to Clark, Lois didn’t give a proper reason why it happened. She just said, “You’ll figure it out.”

“It sounds like she knows something I don’t.” Clark sighed. “Thanks.”

Bruce simply nodded and hit play on the movie neither seemed to be paying attention to.

It was going to be a rough few months. Lois and Clark had been together for two years and he was in love with her for another year before that. She even knew his identity. Obviously, she’d never tell anyone, so that wasn’t an issue. The problem was making Clark feel better as quickly as possible. This had already changed his actions during meetings, who knew how it would impair his judgement on the field.

A week later, Bruce found Clark in the cave. He hadn’t spoken to Bruce since the movie and he was starting to miss the low, comforting voice and firm, stable hand on his shoulder. Bruce didn’t even seem surprised to see him. He just parked the Batmobile and jumped right into conversation. They talked about the League, private cases they were working on, and civilian work. It was very relaxing.

Clark even tried for relationship talk by asking, “How are you and Diana?”

Bruce simply raised a brow at the first time he’s ever asked that question and said, “Fine.”

You’d think Clark would’ve asked before but Bruce made it very clear early on that the topic wasn’t up for discussion.

After that night, Clark visited Bruce almost every week. He came to be expected at the weekly family dinners when Dick tried to stop by. Things were still a little awkward between Dick and Bruce, but they were at least able to talk at the dinner table. Just not to each other.

A few months after this little arrangement and Clark seemed to be doing better. He still would space out and frown every once in a while, but his work wasn’t hindered and he even mentioned Lois a few times when telling Bruce about The Planet.

Eventually Clark would occasionally stop by more than once a week. And Bruce had had enough. These unexpected drop-ins were messing up his schedule and were dangerously close to Clark interfering in Gotham crime territory. They were unexpected and it was unnerving to see bright red and blue casually sitting at his chair in the cave so often. Of course, he was happy Clark was feeling better but Bruce was not going to be his crutch.

Bruce found Clark in the cave unexpectedly again and was already agitated from losing a lead while out on patrol. He couldn’t even hear the words coming out of Clark’s mouth. Whether it was a greeting or a story or even a case, it didn’t matter. All he could do was tell him, “Get out.”

“-what?” Clark was startled, naturally. He hadn’t heard an abrupt statement like that in a while.

Bruce rubbed the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. It was taxing keeping up with the kids, The League, Gotham crime, Wayne Industries, the paparazzi, and now Clark. “I have a balance in my life and you’re disrupting it. I will not be your crutch now that you’re not with Lois.”

“This has nothing to do with… What are you talking about?”

“Go back to Metropolis and save some people, Superman. I have work to do.”

Bruce let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding when Clark left.

Clark was going to argue, but something stopped him. Something about what Bruce said struck him. It didn’t take long for him to figure out why; Bruce was right. Clark was spending way too much time in Gotham. The thing was, he couldn’t imagine it being about Lois. He hadn’t been sad over her in months. Of course he’d missed her after being used to her company for so long, but he hadn’t missed being with her in a romantic sense.

When Clark had started smothering Bruce, he had no idea. It was ridiculous to expect such a private man to continue to host him as much as he had been, especially since almost every visit had been uninvited.

Clark stayed up most of the night unable to understand his own behavior over the past few months. He knew he enjoyed Bruce’s company, but why wouldn’t he? They’ve been friends for years. But if Bruce came to Metropolis that often, Clark supposed he’d also be frustrated with Bruce. The next week was spent in Metropolis. As was the next week. And the week after that. The only communication to Bruce was for any progress on the Luthor case, which was limited.

The problem with this response was that Clark was sad again. Not as upset as he’d been with the break up, but it was enough of a difference for Lois to ask. Especially since that distracted frown hadn’t disappeared all day. Lois and Clark came to an understanding. They’d never stop caring for one another, so it was a little uncomfortable being at work together in the beginning. But they were adults. Slowly, they began to talk. Not every day and not for long. But they could talk to each other.

Clark gave her smile that didn’t reach his eyes, “Thanks for asking, but I’m okay.”

She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. “Listen here Smallville,” she leaned in close, “If there’s anything _special_ going on-”

“It’s nothing like that, don’t worry. Just Batman being his usual self.”

She didn’t to push for more information. As curious as she was, she still needed time before she could listen to any more stories of Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome from Clark. She walked away as his phone rang. Though it was hard to miss the look of surprise on the man’s face when he saw the caller ID. It was also hard the miss the confused greeting Clark gave. She turned back to her work with a sad smile on her face. She had a feeling whoever was on the phone would make Clark feel better.

Clark was collecting his papers into a suitcase as he heard, “Please come back,” in his ear.

“What?”

“Bruce is driving us crazier than usual.”

Clark sighed. This was not the call he was expecting. There was a small ache of disappointment in his chest that Dick called instead of Bruce.

Clark wished he could “need a drink” sometimes. But stewing over a conversation that hadn’t happened yet at a bar wouldn’t help anything. So he decided to find an alleyway to hide in so he could speed home. “Hang on a second, Dick.” He needed some privacy and no distractions for this conversation.

“I’d love to see you, but I’m giving your dad some space.”

Clark jumped, startled by the frustrated groan on the other end of the line. “Whatever he said to you, I don’t care. He meant cut back on visits, not leave forever!”

Clark flushed. It had been a while since visiting the manor. He supposed it couldn’t hurt to visit now.

“Couldn’t hurt? Dude, it’s been over a month.”

Clark’s hand swept down his face in embarrassment for overreacting to Bruce’s anger. His chest continued to ache but this time it was at the thought of seeing Bruce again. Why the hell was he this emotional about seeing him again? He needed to get it together. It was just Bruce. The guy got irritated with Clark all the time. Nothing was new about this situation. Nothing to get so worked up over. And nothing to get Dick upset over. He really needed to apologize.

Dick laughed, “It’s fine. Just get over here. Bruce in a bad mood is not helping our… situation.”

“That’s still going on? I thought it was getting better.” There was no way their little embarrassing situation could last this long, even with a family as complicated as the Waynes, and that was putting it politely.

“That’s not important,” Dick said quickly. “Just hurry. I can’t take not talking to him without a buffer to make dinner more bearable.”

“What about Tim and Damian?”

Dick was silent. Clark could feel the think-about-what-you-just-said stare through the phone.

“What?” Clark asked. “Tim’s not that bad. And Damian’s more well behaved at the table. I’m sure especially when I’m not there.”

They both laughed. It was really nice talking to Dick again. He was a great kid. It was like talking to a more easygoing Bruce. It was unusual how calm Dick was most of the time honestly. He was surprised at himself for missing the roughness of Bruce’s personality.

“Okay,” Clark said after a beat of silence. “What’s really going on? Bruce told me what happened and I thought you’d both be over it by now.”

“He told you?” Dick was rightfully shocked. Bruce telling someone something so personal and embarrassing was out of the question. “What did he say exactly?”

Clark thought for a minute. “I don’t remember his exact words, but just that you caught him watching porn.”

Dick sighed. “That’s not exactly everything.”

Clark pushed through the awkward topic as best he could. “I’m going to assume he was masturbating. I don’t need to hear about it.” He then proceeded to laugh at Dick’s choked sound on the other end of the phone, no doubt remembering the moment. It was probably burned into his retinas, poor guy.

“As disturbingly right as you are, I did see… _that…_. That’s not what the weird part was. It’s the type of porn he was watching that really surprised me.”

Clark was beyond confused now. How could type of porn matter? Lots of people had strange kinks. And considering the Batman, Clark wouldn’t doubt he had some that were out there. Clark himself had some ones he’d classify as a little unusual. There was one in particular Lois didn’t even know about.

“Just hear me out,” Dick said. He sighed before continuing, “Look, I don’t want to out him, but this is becoming a real problem between us… I think...I mean... He’s… Bruce was watching gay porn. And he was _really_ into it.”

Dick heard a thud on the other end of the line.

“Hello?”

Clark scrambled to pick the phone off of the floor and respond with some semblance of calm. Because it shouldn’t matter. Why would it matter what Bruce’s sexuality was? Bruce was his best friend. It didn’t bother him. He never gave that kind of stuff a second thought. It didn’t matter, so why was he having trouble breathing when he didn’t even need air?

“Sorry, Dick-”

“It’s weird that he’s not out isn’t it? I’m not even sure if Alfred knows. Though, maybe he does because Alfred knows everything. I just wish he’d told me. He’s always been great about not caring what we did growing up as long as we were responsible. I just can’t believe he doesn’t trust us… Any of us. ”

“Look-uh,” Clark spoke hurriedly, “I think you just need to show him you’re supportive and, uh, it doesn’t bother you. He cares about you boys a lot, I’m sure there’s a reason he didn’t say anything.”

“I guess,” Dick reluctantly said. “Look, he didn’t tell you that detail for a reason. It’s best he doesn’t know I told you.”

It was hard to understand what exactly was happening. Clark felt like the world was upside down. Oh, that’s because he was actually upside down. Clark flipped back over and stopped hovering over the couch. He really needed to pay attention to floating when emotions were running high. That would get him in trouble one day.

“Thanks, Clark. Look, I need to cool off. I get what you’re saying but I still wish he would’ve told me. I’ll see you soon.”

_Click._

Clark took a moment to take a few deep breaths. He put the phone down so he wouldn’t break it and stood. Shaking from anything other than fury, laughter, or sadness was not something he was used to. Sure, he’d saved Lois’ life a few times. But it was from nothing would cause a huge panic. Speeding to catch someone from falling was something he did on almost a daily basis. It was instinct to go after anyone falling from a great height. He’d worry about her, but he’d never had to panic about her. But he was panicking now. And over what exactly?

Over the possibility of Bruce liking men? Or maybe it was the fact that his best friend didn’t trust him enough with that information. Like Dick was upset over. Bruce was a private man, Clark understood that. But there was no way he’d think Clark would ostracize him for something like that, so why didn’t he say anything?

Clark sighed. He needed to sleep. Clark groaned and rubbed his face. He’d deal with this tomorrow.

And tomorrow he did. The panic seemed to be over and his mind had moved on. All morning, the only thing going through Clark’s head was, _What kind of porn did he watch?_ It was invasively curious territory. Which annoyed him to be honest, because he never thought about that sort of thing when Jimmy came out to him at work a few years ago. It shouldn’t be any different with Bruce.

“Something bothering you, Kansas?”

“Huh? Oh, nothing.”

“Hmm.” Lois made that thinking noise when she ~~thought she~~ knew something Clark didn’t.

“What?” Clark asked.

“Did you get in a fight with someone in the JL?”

Clark shook his head. “Just got some information about… from Batman is all.”

Lois accepted the answer and walked away. Actually, she accepted the answer a little too easily. What the hell?

Clark watched her walk away and thought hard about what that little smile could mean. She didn’t know who Batman was, did she? No, she would’ve told him she found out. Probably. He watched her go back to her desk and type away, adjusting her red blouse as she sat down. The color red always suited her. Of course, it wouldn’t suit her if she ever went to Gotham. Clark chuckled at the thought.

And then Clark was on his feet so suddenly and out the door that he was sure someone would suspect his identity. He ran all the way to the Fortress and back. There was no reason to. He just needed to run. He had to get away. But he had to come back. He just needed a quick way to let off some steam. Running was a good way to do that. So was punching anything in the fortress. But he refrained from doing that. After all, he wasn’t angry. This burst of energy was nowhere near anger or excitement of any kind. When he got back, he marched up to Lois with wide eyes and didn’t say a word. He couldn’t get his voice to work properly.

“So,” she said, “you finally realized?”

So she _knew_.

What the hell?


	5. Chapter 5

It was about the fifth time they’d had this argument and the first time she’d been to Clark’s apartment since she moved out. Neither of them thought it’d happen at all, let alone this soon after the break up.

“Damn it, Lois! I was having a crisis and didn’t even know it and you couldn’t tell me?”

“Listen here. It’s not my job to out you to yourself.”

“There’s nothing to out! I’m not gay!”

“You are for one tall, dark bat.”

Clark groaned into his hands. Lois almost laughed. But she felt bad for him. If only he’d realized his feelings for Batman sooner, she could’ve helped him go after him. Now, it made her too uncomfortable. Everything was too fresh.

“Look,” Lois walked to the door. “Give yourself a few days to calm down. Masturbate to him a little bit, whatever you need to do-”

“Lois!”

“-and then go say hi. Trust me, you guys are so close, things shouldn’t be that different between the two of you once you tell him.” She paused before amending, “If you tell him.” Once he realized the friendship was still intact, Clark could go chase that muscled ass with a clear head.

Lois left Clark to pull out his hair for a few days and _not_ masturbate to Bruce _or at all_. When he still wasn’t ready but decided it was time to stop avoiding his friend, Clark cleaned himself up and flew to Gotham. He didn’t need another awkward and enlightening call from Dick.

That break from seeing Bruce turned out to be the worst idea he’d ever had. Sure, the many weeks calmed him down and were just enough time to keep Bruce from confronting him on the long absence. However, the moment he set his eyes on Bruce, he couldn’t keep them off of him. It was like he never noticed before how that smirk made his heart flutter or how all of his clothes fit him really well. _Really_ well. Particularly the spandex body of the Batsuit. Damn, Bruce was a beautiful man.

It was a huge problem because he kept spacing out and missing half of what Bruce said. The man was getting irritated with him. If Clark didn’t leave, he would end up giving Bruce too many clues. He was actually surprised Bruce hadn’t figured it out already.

Clark couldn’t stop staring at those thick arms. And that ass. If Clark could make him bend over more often, he’d do it in a heartbeat. He was just trying not to be suspicious, which was extremely difficult after seeing your best friend of around five years for the first time since you realized he was hot. And you ended up finding out because of his son and your ex.

This was really fucked up.

“I think I’m gonna head out.” Clark decided. “I have to work on something for Perry.”

“Then why’d you stop by?”

Of course, Bruce questioned him. But this time, Clark was ready. “I hadn’t seen you in a while.” Short and to the point sentences were Clark’s strategy to avoid saying anything too damaging.

“Hmm.”

Clark hated that hum. And that scrutinizing look. Clark was glad he decided to wear his civilian clothes. He felt more hidden behind his glasses and clothes that weren’t skin tight. The thought of Bruce staring at his ass made him shudder though.

Of course, Bruce noticed.

“Are you cold?” he asked. He suddenly looked very concerned. Those blue eyes scanned Clark’s entire body, looking for signs of injury.

“No, no, I’m fine.”

It wasn’t strange for them to keep things from each other but if Clark was sick, that was a big problem. Just imagining a Kryptonian sneezing made Bruce tense. Maybe he could connect to the Fortress’ files from here and figure out how to cure Clark before anyone got hurt.

“I can hear the gears in your head turning. I’m not sick.” Clark would just have to keep the mood as light as possible.

It was kind of nice to have Bruce outwardly expressing some concern for Clark’s wellbeing. Normally he’d dismiss Clark without a second thought but this time, he was curious. Even if the way he expressed that curiosity was rude.

Bruce pushed a little more, mentioning the shiver directly. It was right for him to be concerned. Clark was never sick and they knew nothing of Kryptonian diseases. They had the fortress to turn to, sure, but who knew where the gaps in information on that machine were.

“I promise Bruce, it’s just distracting being here right no-uh, um, I mean.” Clark had no idea what he was saying but he needed to get out of there fast. “I’m, I should go. The work. Perry. Deadlines. I’ll see you later, Bruce. I’ll be back for dinner,” he promised, pretending everything was normal even though it was an absolute bullshit excuse. Also, he now couldn’t back out of it.

Bruce’s initial reaction was to be insulted and confused. He was distracting Clark? From what exactly? The articles he was writing lately weren’t Pulitzer-worthy or anything. Maybe Perry had him working on a special project. Why the hell would Clark come over after so long and then leave so abruptly, anyway? Maybe he really was sick.

And damn that Kryptonian because now Bruce was distracted. He briefly looked into possible diseases Clark could be coming down with but nothing came up. Maybe Clark really was just very busy. If it was making him that on edge, though, Bruce would need to have a talk with him. It was clearly affecting him negatively and that wouldn’t go down well on the field.

With that thought to comfort him somewhat, Bruce finished up his work for the night and headed to bed. He slipped out of his bath robe and laid in bed on top of the cool sheets. That warm shower was very relaxing. And honestly, so was Clark’s visit, despite the strange behavior. It was comforting to know that he wanted to see Bruce. Honestly, as much as he pushed, he was a little afraid one day of pushing too hard and losing Clark forever. On the one hand, it would probably be safer for them both, considering Bruce’s feelings, but on the other, he didn’t know how well he’d handle that kind of a loss, even if it wasn’t a death.

Bruce let out a breath as he trailed his hand down his chest. He reached and pumped his hand slowly, allowing his cock to thicken at the thought of a muscled ass in red spandex. He let out a soft grunt as he pictured Clark’s cocky smirk when he got the best of Bruce in a conversation. That smirk on this bed, holding Bruce’s arms down, holding perfectly still above him, close enough for him to grind into but not giving anything back. Those blue eyes just staring at him expectantly, waiting patiently for him to come, not actively helping in any way. Just watching and humming thoughtfully every once in awhile.

Bruce’s breathing picked up and he let out a strangled sound as he stopped moving his hand in time with fantasy Clark pulling back right before his release.

The fantasy came to an end when he heard a knock at the window. He grabbed a robe and quickly let Diana in once he realized it was her. She looked down at the tented fabric and raised a suggestive eyebrow at him.

“Couldn’t you wait for me?”

Bruce allowed himself a hungry smile, “I didn’t know you were coming.” He let his eyes wander her body and forced his mind to change focus for the night.

The night ended faster than usual with Bruce already worked up. His enthusiasm was not lost on Diana. Halfway through she was laughing and asked what he was doing before she showed up. Bruce bit her ear and growled, “Thinking about you,” before moving faster.

They both knew it was a lie, but the situation was hot and the words struck a chord that had Diana on the verge of hurting Bruce with her strength. They finished with a tender kiss.

Diana ran her fingers through Bruce’s hair as he rested on her chest. He allowed himself a few strokes of relaxing afterglow before he sat up and gave Diana a sad look. He whispered an apology.

“I can’t do this anymore.”

The fling wasn’t meant to last unless either of them spoke of properly dating, but they’d been having casual sex for so long, it’d be a big change to get used to. Diana noticed neither of them were ready to pursue anything serious with each other and if they continued on this path, it might hurt their friendship. Especially with Bruce’s obvious romantic distraction.

“Do not be sad,” Diana brought her hand up to cup his face, “My mind is in a similar state.”

Bruce took the hand in his and kissed it. He loved her, but not like he loved Clark. A long time ago, he thought it might’ve been possible to fall for her completely. Their situation showed him that they had great chemistry but also a great friendship he wanted to preserve while he pursued other relationships.

“Don’t go back to that cat, now,” Diana said.

She wanted to tell him to go after Clark already. Others would start noticing his feelings, including Clark. Clark was single now and more open to interpreting any unconscious signals. No one would be happy with Clark asking direct questions before Bruce was ready to deal with them.

Bruce was startled by her response and turned an amused smirk on her. “I would never.”

There were a lot lies in the room tonight, but Bruce could live with that. Maybe that was another reason Diana had to leave, they both knew she couldn’t.

❖❖❖

Picking the right galas to attend wasn’t difficult, however it was a task to keep up with how drunk or how sober he should be that night. Brucie was a flirt and an alcoholic, but no one denied that he had his responsible moments. It was just a matter of knowing how to deal with the man when he was in a playful mood. Because sober or not, Bruce liked to put on a show for the public. Tonight was an art show for a friend of a friend. Not important enough to not be an ass at, but important enough to make an appearance. The night was spent loudly admiring the art while taking showy sips of his cocktail and grabbing a new glass when he knew he was being watched.

It was an average night for Brucie; there weren’t any great connections to make. But he also spent much of his time entertaining the young women that thought his flirtatious commentary comparing them to art charming.

“Brucie, sweetheart, every time I see you you’re having a good time. Even at something as dull as an art show,” a young one in a slimming dress said. Marrying into money was difficult for some people and she was still getting used to the game.

“Why Angela,” Bruce said, exaggeratedly horrified, “How could I not find these bright blues as lovely as your eyes.”

It wasn’t a creative line, but she giggled and smacked his arm lightly, chastising him for flirting with a married woman. He smiled charmingly and kept the flirting to a minimum. He knew what the limit was for most men before he’d need to pretend he couldn’t fight while also not getting his ass beat by a jealous man. But this time he didn’t need to worry about toeing any line because he just spotted a surprisingly interesting specimen on the other side of the hall. He had some new eye candy to entertain.

  
  


He hated going to events like this. Field research wasn’t a problem for Clark but this time it wasn’t even for his own article. Rose needed a date so she could fit in better with the married crowd and once again, Clark had to help out. Not that that in itself was an issue. He just knew Gotham better than anyone on the team (they had _no_ idea) so they thought it’d be best if he guided Rose through her first visit. One of the investors here was interested in the kinds of pieces Rose had seen in the emerging artists she wrote about; so she wanted to gauge this man’s interest in the less known crowd.

“Rose, I’d rather not be left alone,” Clark said through clenched teeth.

“They’re not going to eat you, hon.”

“Yes they are.”

Rose laughed. “I just need to speak to that woman over there before I hone in on her husband, okay? I don’t want any negative talk about me screwing things up. These women like to gossip and I’m not going to cause problems for a married couple.”

They’d been there long enough that most had seen her arm around Clark’s. They talked to a few people about the paintings and were introduced as a couple. It was the perfect time for Rose to start mingling with the women on her own. The problem was that Clark didn’t even have an article to work on so he was just going to have to actually admire the art and uptalk Rose just the right amount to anyone that approached him. A simple job that he was happy to do for her. But that didn’t mean he had to enjoy it. Lucky for him, someone came along to entertain him.

“Why Mr. Kent, what’re _you_ doing at a boooring little ar’gallery?”

Clark turned his shocked eyes on an unsteady Brucie Wayne. The exaggerated drunk act wasn’t surprising at an event like this. There was nothing here to benefit a sober Brucie and everything to gain, if the giggling flock of women behind him were anything to go by.

“Mr. Wayne,” Clark forced out, surprised by the direct conversation.

Rose leaned in to greet Bruce and then whispered to Clark, “See I told you you’d be fine. Your old acquaintance Brucie here will keep you company. You might even get a story out of it.”

“Rose!” Clark called, but it was too late. She made her excuse and left.

Not that he didn’t enjoy time with Bruce, but it was so difficult to enjoy that time together in public. In fact, they weren’t supposed to know each other very well at all. Clark interviewed the man a few times before, but it never lasted long. Getting statements from Bruce was never easy for anyone. Most of what he said was a blabber of nonsense or a big gesture with a prewritten script said to an audience of reporters. Not that Clark cared once he found out exactly who Bruce Wayne really was.

“ _Bruce Wayne, huh? Do you really have the time to play dress up and beat up guys in alleyways?”_

“ _Clark Kent. Does The Planet know you’re their biggest selling point?”_

“ _...Touché”_

It was an interesting interaction. Clark never expected that meeting to turn into a force of trust between the two men. They knew their jobs even if they didn’t know the extent of the other’s work. All they knew was that they had to keep their identities secret. At least until they learned more about each other and decided where to go from there. Clark was still amazed how far their partnership had come. It’d turned into a friendship Clark treasured above all others.

“My colleague Rose needed an escort for the night to write her piece,” Clark said.

“The night?”

“Yes, we’re here on company money.”

“S’your hotel accept’ble or will alternate lodgin’s be nec’ssary?” Bruce leered.

Clark flushed at the implication and politely declined. It was difficult keeping his voice even, but he wasn’t sure if it was from annoyance or desire. He quickly glanced around the room. Thankfully no one was paying them mind. A flirtatious-with-anything-that-moves Brucie Wayne was absolutely normal. Bruce had definitely flirted with Clark at every public encounter; they both knew he was attractive and it would be unusual if Bruce didn’t. But to have such a sudden suggestive line thrown at him so soon after Clark discovered his feelings was overwhelming. He hadn’t had time to adjust being around Bruce with the knowledge.

The ruffled response didn’t go unnoticed. Bruce was intrigued. It wasn’t difficult to fluster Clark, however these encounters normally warranted a suppressed eyeroll and a forced smile. The nervous gaze fluttering to the left and the pink cheeks were rare, if they occurred at all.

Bruce took a step towards Clark, not quite touching but close enough to be considered an invasion of personal space. The surprise in Clark’s face was evident as Bruce didn’t stop. He slapped Clark’s arm and laughed at his declined invitation and allowed his hand to run gently upwards. Clark didn’t seem to know where to look and Bruce was starting to have trouble controlling his own reactions. Being careful was key while testing his theory. He had to make sure Clark thought everything was normal on Bruce’s end.

Continuing to push, Bruce tried to step closer and “tripped” over his feet and into Clark’s quick reflexes. “Wow there, sorry! Goood catch, boyscou’,” Bruce smiled teasingly.

Normally, Clark might grimace and take his leave at that point, tired of Bruce’s teasing. Maybe he’d go to the restroom and try to wash off the stink of spilled cocktail. Or go change his shirt. It wasn’t unusual for him to carry a spare after all. But not tonight.

Tonight, Clark was indecisive. He was staring at Bruce with a look of shock and something else Bruce couldn’t quite place. At least not until Bruce’s tongue slipped out of his mouth to moisten his lips while he stared into those bright blues. Clark’s cheeks turned dark as his eyes slipped to gawk at those glistening lips. His grip on Bruce’s arms tightened.

Bruce almost winced at the pressure. Instead, he watched his friend’s pupils dilate and breath come in quick exhales. Bruce just barely forced his face not to move as the realization hit him.

He let out a slow breath to calm his nerves and let impulse guide the next move. A quick stabling of legs and he slid against Clark’s body, not missing a moment of that shudder running through those muscles. He inclined his lips towards Clark’s ear and dropped his voice an octave, “What’s the matter Mr. Kent? Can’t the country boy reporter handle a bit of flirting from a big city drunk?”

It was the most coherent thing Bruce had said all night. And what got Clark to book out of there as quickly as possible. He stammered an apology and a goodbye as he almost threw Bruce off of him and barely stopped himself from running out the building. He didn’t even tell Rose he was leaving.

Bruce watched the man leave in wonder, a small smile coming to his face as he let happiness flow through him. He shook his damaging thoughts away as a lovely young broad came to clutch at his side. Turning to her, he swallowed down the bitterness coming up behind the smile. There were too many questions about Clark’s feelings to sort through and too many negative outcomes even if the answers to those questions were positive.

If Clark wasn’t going through a phase or some sort of breakdown…

Bruce stopped himself from reconsidering. He’d thought about this enough over the years. The decision was made.

It would be a little chilly to a human outside, but Clark didn’t feel it. And he wouldn’t have felt it even if he was human because he hadn’t felt the need to burn something in a long time. He hadn’t lost control of his heat vision in the slightest, but that didn’t mean the heat behind his eyes wasn’t there. He grudgingly took a taxi home after convincing himself to use that time to calm down before he did anything rash. Like masturbate to his best friend flirting with him and maybe even taking him to some _private lodgings_ -fuck, Clark was not doing well.

With a few minutes to breath, Clark calmed himself enough to not unzip his pants in the back of a cab. It also helped him to remember Rose.

“Shit,” he mumbled as he called her.

“Clark? Where are you?” A call from him when he should be near confused her.

“In a cab. I’m going back to the hotel.”

“What, why? Are you okay?”

Clark sighed. _No? Not really. I recently realized I’m in love with my best friend and apparently dicks don’t bother me. So, when said best friend flirted with me for the millionth time, instead of turning him down easy like I usually do since we both know he’s not serious I got hard and ran away._ “I’m not feeling too well.”

“Are you serious?! Do you need anything?” Clark being sick wasn’t unusual per say, it was a good excuse for longer missions, however no one has ever seen him so much as sneeze. So, hearing about these incidents was still a bit strange to some people. Clark was always so put together.

Clark convinced Rose to finish her research while he got some rest. It was a cold shower and an early night for him.

❖❖❖

Clark saw Bruce the next time at a league meeting. His hands were clammy and his mind raced while going over what he was going to say before reaching the tower. How did he normally greet Bruce? Was it an enthusiastic, “Hey Bruce!” or was it more of a casual nod and small smile? Maybe he could corner Bruce and ask him _what the hell that overly flirtatious behavior was for._

Tossing in bed most of the night of the gala, Clark came to the conclusion that he wasn’t overreacting just because of his feelings. Bruce really did amp up the flirting. Sure, he was a little more fake-drunk than usual, but he’d never gone that far with his behavior before. It had to be intentional.

When Clark ran into Bruce in the hallway of the tower, he was about to question the hell out of the man. But then Bruce nodded in greeting like usual. Right. Like usual.

“Hi Batman.”

“The meeting is in five.” And he stalked off.

That was abrupt, almost rude. It was normal. That night must’ve been Bruce just acting. Like he usually did.

It wasn’t until Clark’s next visit to the manor that he questioned Bruce’s behavior again. They were discussing Luthor again and trying to detail the next steps in investigating. No amount of hacking or breaking and entering showed them any the results over the past few months and time was running out. Something big was about to happen, they could feel it. There was something they were missing and they needed to figure it out now.

Bruce sat in his chair and Clark pulled one up to the giant computer for himself. A few articles were scattered across the screens as well as a few shots of some floor plans of a few LexCorp owned buildings. There was no way Lex would criminalize himself by putting the project in his own basement.

“Besides, we already checked down there. There’s nothing,” Clark said.

“There has to be a building he owns that’s under a different name. Or some building he’s using.”

Clark sighed. “I’ve checked a million times and there’s nothing.”

Bruce gave Clark an unreadable look, almost as if he was forcing himself to keep a neutral face. “There are plenty of _hints_ superpowers miss, Clark. You can’t,” he paused to look Clark directly in the eyes as he corrected himself, “You don’t notice everything.”

Clark wasn’t sure what Bruce was trying to imply but he shifted in his seat and averted his gaze, unsure why he was so uncomfortable.

“I-I guess not.” Clark clear his throat.

Bruce watched the nervous man twitch in his seat and hid a smirk. He wondered how far he could push Clark before the poor guy snapped. The topic dropped for the time being. They continued their discussion, trying to come up with alternate ways to track Luthor and his activities.

The discussion continued throughout dinner, which was taken in the cave. A thanks to Alfred and they ate in relative silence, enjoying their food and relaxing their minds a bit before analyzing the articles again and considering more strategies.

Chewing quietly, lost in thought, Clark didn’t notice immediately when Bruce started licking his lips slowly. Some mustard brushed off of the sandwich and his tongue swept it up in two slow licks. After which, Bruce brought the back of his hand up to his face and cleaned his finger in the same slow fashion, sucking the tip into his mouth just for a second. With his lips still connected to his finger, Bruce lifted his gaze to Clark’s, smirked, and let his hand fall.

Clark let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. He swallowed the saliva that threatened to spill from his mouth and stuffed the rest of the sandwich into his mouth whole, needing something to distract him from-

“Slow down, the sandwich isn’t going anywhere,” Bruce chuckled. After a breath, “I didn’t realize you could fit so much in your mouth.”

Clark almost choked. He turned an incredulous look to his friend, but Bruce was already back to typing away, researching, hacking, Clark didn’t really know. He couldn’t get the image of tongues, long licks, and open mouths--Luckily it didn’t take long to calm down enough to focus on the planning. He just had to see Lex Luthor’s face on the screen and was sufficiently distracted. For now.

Clark was getting frustrated and couldn’t think of anything better than just busting into LexCorp and demanding to know what the man was hiding. For once, when Clark suggested something so rash, Bruce didn’t tell him to calm down. It was silent long enough for Clark to feel almost ashamed and the need to backtrack when Bruce said, “If he didn’t have kryptonite on him, I’d almost tell you to wreck him.”

Clark was gobsmacked. He let out a startled chuckle at the quiet outburst. Bruce must really be losing his temper with this case.

“Of course, I’d rather you wreck someone else.”

Clark wished he was drinking something just so he could’ve spit it out everywhere. “Excuse me?” voice raised an octave at the end.

The corner of Bruce’s lip quirked upwards. “Sorry, I’ve been spending too much time around Hal.”

Clark nodded, not really knowing what to say to that. Hal got on Bruce’s nerves. If the man saw a green glow anywhere in his vicinity he’d tense up, whether he thought it was kryptonite or Lantern. Those two really needed to learn to get along. Their attitudes were going to get them both hurt. Actually they’d already both been hurt because their dislike of each other. They were better about how it affected work in the heat of battle, but the distaste was still there.

Wait. If he acknowledged spending that much time with Hal, that meant he was openly admitting to flirting with Clark.

A few more moments of silence and Clark was thinking about the gala. The extra heavy touching and teasing. This wasn’t quite that bad but still, Bruce never even jokingly flirted with him outside of his public persona. Was it a fluke? Maybe he had something to drink before Clark came over and it was finally hitting him.

“Hal can really come on strong, turn any situation into some kind of proposition.” Clark didn’t know why was continuing this conversation. It was dangerous territory, but he couldn’t stop thinking about the flirting from the gala. Maybe Bruce really was spending time with Hal. Clark’s heart sank at the thought. Of course the two should learn to get along but hopefully they weren’t getting too close. Clark internally winced at the jealous thought.

“Yes. He can turn a glance into a dramatic double take, look you up and down,” Bruce deliberately looked Clark up and down, “and make you feel absolutely naked.”

Clark’s cheeks warmed as he processed the comment. “With a suit so tight, I’d be surprised if you didn’t feel naked.”

Bruce raised his eyebrows in surprise. He smirked, pleased by the knowledge that Clark noticed his body previously. The teasing banter continued all evening, Clark throwing in a few flirtatious remarks of his own when he wasn’t too flustered.


	6. Chapter 6

Bruce Wayne traveled often enough for extravagant vacations (League or Batman business) or for Wayne Industries. Today he was in Metropolis for a meeting with Lex Luthor. Clark was pissed for not being told so he decided to try and meet them under the guise of writing an article on the strange partnership. It didn’t succeed. Since the men hadn’t fleshed out their partnership quite yet, they didn’t permit Clark to interview them. It didn’t help that Bruce avoided Clark the whole time while in Metropolis.

When Bruce was back in Gotham, Clark set up an interview with Bruce Wayne about the partnership. The man was clearly not going to speak to him as a friend so Clark was going to force the man to pay attention to at least Mr. Kent the reporter. Clark entered Bruce’s office pissed the fuck off, trying not to crush his camera in his anger. How dare Bruce initiate a plan, also a stupidly dangerous plan, without talking to Clark about it. Clark started yelling the moment Bruce’s secretary closed the door. He started on about how the man didn’t even at least tell him he was going to Metropolis for their mission.

“Which brings me to my next point. Why the hell are you working with Lex Luthor?” Clark cursing was never a good sign.

“I needed to go in without any interference from you. I knew you’d try to stop me if I told you what I was planning,” Bruce replied.

The plan wasn’t bad. Bruce simply wanted as much insider information as he could get about Luthor and the guy postponed this meeting for months. It was obvious the man planned to act soon. It took a long time, but Bruce was able to gather a couple of trusted lawyers and build an excuse that Luthor would believe beneficial to them both. It was hard enough without the interference of an over protective alien telling him it was too dangerous.

“Damn it Bruce, of course I would’ve tried to stop you. That man carries around kryptonite with him. That’s how paranoid he is. I wouldn’t even be surprised if he was suspicious of my identity!”

Bruce started at that. “That’s dangerous.”

“I know he doesn’t know or he would’ve done something to hurt me by now, but… Can’t you see how insane this is?”

“No.”

Clark let out a frustrated growl and almost slammed his fists on Bruce’s desk.

“You can’t afford to replace that. Be careful.” Bruce’s voice was calm. He could easily buy himself a new desk, but Clark didn’t need to break the one he already had. Clark needed to calm down.

“Look,” Clark took a deep breath. “You have to understand why I’m so worried.”

“So worried you felt the need to break your camera,” Bruce said.

“Crap.” It was a colorful day for Clark’s vocabulary. He found he has crushed the camera in his anger, not quite controlling his strength. He’d have to find a new way to a get picture of Bruce for his article. Not that that was the main problem. He’d have to replace the camera too.

“Your face turns red when you’re angry, did you know that? It reminds me of Bryn West’s gala.” Bruce held back a chuckle at the suddenly shy look on his guest’s face. “Do you remember that night?”

“Y-yes.” Clark cleared his throat.

Of course he remembered that night! Bruce practically falling into Clark’s lap. He was half surprised the man didn’t attempt to give him a quickie right there on one of the paintings. He really shouldn’t be thinking of Bruce touching him while being in his office.

“Does your chest turn that color too?” Bruce continued to tease and Clark continued to die. How did the conversation get turned around like this? Bruce was doing it a lot lately.

“Don’t know.” Clark was a little annoyed at having his anger suddenly swept away by a few distracting words. So, he decided to play along. “You’d have to see for yourself.” _Let’s see how far he’ll take this game._

Bruce smiled. It was a smile like he’d won already. Which confused Clark, they just started.

Bruce beckoned Clark closer with his finger. “Why don’t you show me, farm boy?”

Clark swallowed. This was new. This was forward. This was too forward. He could feel how warm his face was but didn’t want to back down now. He would out-stubborn Bruce no matter what. (Not to mention that this was absolutely a wet dream come to life.) There was no way Bruce wouldn’t back down if he took it a step further. He’d have to be creative though, make sure Bruce was working for what he wanted.

Walking around the dark mahogany desk, Clark began to unbutton his shirt, plucking at the small buttons slowly. It was the only piece of clothing on his upper body and for that he was thankful. The quicker he could do this, the better. Though he slowed his movements even more when Bruce’s gaze immediately fell to the newly exposed skin and followed the trail down as Clark pulled his shirt apart.

It took a lot of control to not shake from nerves, but Clark was able to take a confident seat on Bruce’s desk. Both legs hung down between Bruce’s. He leaned back to let the shirt slide open, and the sun hit his chest from the large window behind Bruce. His heart pounded as he analyzed every reaction he could from Bruce.

Bruce was lost. He took one long look at the muscled chest and the panting man on his desk. His eyes followed the dips of Clark’s v-curve to the, Bruce couldn’t believe it, bulge in the man’s pants. It was hard for Clark not to squirm or at least cross his legs. He knew he was hard and he knew Bruce could see it. But he couldn’t end the game yet. He had to push.

A long lick to wet his dry lips and Bruce was in between Clark’s legs, pressed as close as he could get to the man without leaning over. Their pants barely brushed against each other. They could feel the heat of the other, but there was no actual contact. Not yet. They both paused, staring at each other, daring the other to move. Bruce’s took in Clark’s deep breaths and shining body under the light.

“What do you know,” he murmured, “Your blush does reach your chest.”

And he leaned down and took a nipple into his mouth. Clark cried out, surprised by the wet warmth of those soft lips finally touching him. His flush grew darker and he automatically brought his hand up to the back of Bruce’s head. Bruce hummed, encouraging Clark to run his fingers through that soft hair.

Lips trailed up Clark’s chest to bite at the side of his neck. The scrape of teeth against skin caused goosebumps to travel down Clark’s side and arch against Bruce’s body. Those soft lips slid up Clark’s jaw and pushed hard against his own, immediately opening to probe with a tongue. Clark sucked in Bruce’s tongue wetly. Bruce groaned and drove in harder. He grabbed what he could reach of Clark’s ass and pulled his crotch forward to meet his. Both men gasped and rotated their hips for as much friction as possible through those stupid layers of clothing.

With a great effort, Clark stopped moving and gently pushed against Bruce’s chest until he reluctantly pulled back. Clark took in Bruce’s ruffled appearance and almost forgot what he was going to say. Trying to speak coherently while his heart thumped loudly in time with Bruce’s and both their cocks touched, even if through cloth, was difficult.

“Wait,” he said breathlessly. “We should talk about this.”

Bruce bit the inside of his cheeks to keep from spitting out an angry retort. Leave it to Clark to cock block him in the middle of sex. But he was right. It was just so hard to worry about that when such plump lips were waiting to be bitten and a leaking cock was waiting to be sucked.

“You really want to talk about this right now?” Bruce was skeptical.

“Yes.” Clark smirked at the desperate look in Bruce’s eyes. For once, it seemed Bruce was struggling with what to do with himself.

Before waiting for Clark to continue, Bruce leaned in to bite that slightly swollen bottom lip. Then he moved to his neck and reached with a hand to play with Clark’s nipple, pulling, flicking, and pinching alternately. Clark let out a few desperate sounds before he regained some control over his vocal cords again. He stuttered over his next words.

“I just think we should-ah, at least talk about-haaa...” Clark jumped and shuddered. Maybe he couldn’t feel cold, but he sure as hell could get goosebumps and damn Bruce was good at causing them. Those teeth eating at the juncture of his neck and shoulder, causing what would be pretty decent hickeys on a human, turned Clark’s muscles weak.

“Mhmm,” Bruce agree while continuing to kiss and bite and tease.

It was hot and warm and too hot. Clark hadn’t realized he’d started thrusting his hips again. This time Bruce turned his body so that Clark could hump the inside of Bruce’s hip. Their breaths came faster. Clark’s eyes were closed, lost in the satisfaction of each touch while Bruce’s stayed open, if a bit heavy lidded, to watch Clark come undone.

Breaths came in quicker, hips undulated now, movements bigger and faster. Bruce’s breath stuttered with Clark’s in anticipation as the Kryptonian’s pleasure built. The heat in his core started rising. He was so hard. So desperate. So ready. He needed-he couldn’t-

“A-a-ah-” Clark went silent and shook as Bruce’s arms wrapped around him.

Bruce bit his lip hard, holding back from forcing the man to turn over and spread those cheeks. He whined when Clark’s leg brushed his cock as he quivered. Bruce was about to unbuckle his pants and shove Clark’s hand down there when the phone rang. Bruce cursed when he glanced at the caller ID. He had to take this.

“Hello?” His voice was low and gruff.

Still panting and twitching, coming down from the high of coming in his pants against Bruce’s leg, Clark watched Bruce in a daze. It took a few moments, but when Clark saw himself in the reflection of the window, it started to hit him what just happened. With quiet steps, he began walking to the door after buttoning up his shirt and smoothing down his hair as much as possible.

Bruce never took off the glasses. Huh.

Bruce noticed Clark leaving and quickly put the man on the line on hold. “Wait, Clark.” He leaned in and kissed him softly. It was gentle and chaste and had Clark’s heart racing for a different reason. “As much as I’m dying to continue,” he glanced down, “I need to take this call.”

Clark chuckled. He was about to walk out again when Bruce stopped him with a hand on his arm. He looked almost nervous all of a sudden, as if they didn’t just fuck on his desk with the curtains open in broad daylight. And without locking the door apparently, Clark did not notice that.

“Dinner?” Bruce meant to tell Clark they were having dinner later, but it came out as a question.

Resisting the urge to tease Bruce for losing his bravado from earlier, Clark smiled. “I’ll cook.” 

Dinner went very well. Clark found everything he needed in Bruce’s kitchen. He made corned beef and some vegetables. For dessert, he picked up two large slices of chocolate cake from a bakery down the street. They ended up sharing one of them. They sat close, teasing each other with light strokes and kissing every once in a while. It was a quiet evening and one of the best dates either of them had ever been on.

“So, do I have Lois to thank for this?” Bruce asked.

Clark denied it a little too quickly, cheeks burning.

Bruce laughed, “Oh, I have to hear this story.”

“It’s not really a story… It’s not anything at all,” Clark groaned.

After Clark explained the realization that he liked men and how he confronted Lois, Bruce was leaning back against the couch for support he was shaking so much from laughter.

“It’s not that funny,” Clark grumbled.

“Come here.” Bruce pulled his slightly put out best friend to his lips, never dropping his smile the whole way.

It took a good five minutes from them to come up for air and a good shake out of his giddy daze for Clark to remember to ask about the flirting. The appearance was so sudden, Clark still didn’t quite understand where it had come from.

Bruce leered at Clark. “How could I not notice you staring at my ass?” He laughed at Clark’s embarrassed look and stuttered denials before he sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Clark… I’ve noticed you for a long time. I…”

And then Bruce’s comm went off. Of course Nightwing needed help tonight. Apparently he didn’t think Robin was cut out for it and Red Robin was a busy. Bruce had to meet him across the city in ten. Cock blocked again, Bruce invited Clark over again tomorrow night.

“If you want,” he added.

Clark agreed.

The two spent their time flirting, making out, and rubbing each other off if they weren’t too involved in a case at that moment. Dick was the first out of the kids to notice the change in both men’s behavior. Their smiles were more genuine and often. Even Clark, who was always the definition of sunshine when smiling, had a change in demeanor. It started with a walk to the dining room on his way to one of the family dinners they tried to have regularly. Dick knew Clark was coming so hearing him talk to Bruce wasn’t surprising. It wasn’t even unusual to hear Bruce laugh when the two were together. They always put each other in a good mood despite the little hiccup they had. When Dick turned the corner, he saw Clark tilting Bruce’s head back to stick his tongue down the man’s throat.

The men didn’t notice until Clark snapped his head up at the sound of Dick’s sudden spike in heart rate. Dick turned on his heel and walked away before either man could say anything. He was happy, honestly. Dick was so happy for them. It was about time they started getting along again. And even more than before, sure, that was fine too. He just wished Bruce would talk to him instead of letting his own son find this shit out on his own.

Dinner wasn’t as quiet as usual, as Clark’s infectious good mood kept the conversation going. Afterwards, Dick pulled Clark aside to ask how it happened. Not expecting the question, Clark paused. He thought of where he should start what exactly he should say. This felt like a question for Bruce. Though, Clark didn’t want to ignore answering either. Clark explained his idiocy before and then during the flirting. Dick laughed so hard he almost started crying. The poor guy took this long to realize his obsession with Bruce had nothing to do with simple friendship and didn’t find out until his basically almost-fiancé found out before him and dumped him. It was a romcom.

“Oh _Rao_ , it is, isn’t it,” Clark chuckled. “Have you talked to Bruce yet?”

“No.”

“Now’s probably a good time for that,” Clark encouraged.

“Yeah, I don’t think so. It’s up to him to tell me.” Dick crossed his arms stubbornly.

“What? What are you talking about?” Clark was lost. He thought the idiots were just too embarrassed to talk about what happened.

“‘I didn’t tell you this part but… When I saw what kind of porn he was watching… The… the _gay_ porn, I… I had no idea he liked men.”

Now their behavior made more sense. Bruce wasn’t ready to talk about his sexuality and Dick just wanted the truth. He wanted to be trusted.

Clark put a comforting hand on the young man’s shoulder. The frustration was understandable, especially with how upfront Bruce was when raising all of his kids. He always let them do most of what they wanted as long as they were responsible and didn’t lie. And this wasn’t exactly lying, but Bruce was keeping a pretty big secret.

“I mean,” Dick continued with a smirk on his face, “it’s not like I can out Bruce for him.”

Clark groaned. “Low blow, Grayson.”

That evening, Clark spoke to Bruce. He knew Dick would object so he didn’t say anything to the guy. He tried to make it as clear as possible he didn’t want to and wasn’t trying to meddle. Clark wasn’t a father and didn’t know what that was like. He just wanted his two friends, two people he cared about, to get along. And they were having trouble communicating, so he just wanted to help them talk to each other.

Bruce initially bristled at Clark’s request and how much information he knew. But eventually he relented after he realized he had to tell all of the kids about Clark at some point anyway.

“Damian is not going to take this well,” Bruce said.

“I know.” Clark almost pouted. Bruce chuckled.

Bruce found Dick training in the cave that night. It was easier for all of the boys to train there since there was a lot space and more options for weapons to use. He watched his eldest son and smiled at the young man’s progress. He’d improved so much over the years. No one was as proud of that boy as Bruce.

“Are you going to join in or what?”

Bruce frowned. “I didn’t tell you because it didn’t matter,” he started.

“But you hid it.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

That was a difficult question. Bruce was younger and a little more obvious about his sleeping around and party attitude when he decided to adopt Dick. Because of that, he was scrutinized and a lot of people wanted to prevent Bruce from taking Dick in. Even after the finalizations of all of the paperwork, plenty of people considered Bruce a horrible influence. They slandered him in the news as an alcoholic, a sex-addict, some even criticized him for something as simple as not raising Dick religiously.

“The public speculated, but if they knew, they would have worked even harder to take you away from me. I couldn’t lose you.” _And you couldn’t lose me_ was left unsaid.

“You could’ve explained it to me.”

“No. Not then. You didn’t need that kind of a burden.”

“You didn’t have to tell me specifics. Just the liking men part. Kids are smarter than give them credit for, B. If I never slipped up about your night job, what makes you think I would’ve outed you?”

“I wasn’t going to lie to y-” Bruce’s eyes widened in realization. “So that’s what this is about,” Bruce said.

This is not how Dick wanted this conversation to go.

“Dick… I know I don’t have a right to say this, especially not now, but you could’ve come talk to me. I thought I was clear that you were free to do what wanted as long as you followed my rules. Rules that were only meant to keep you safe.”

After what happened to Dick’s parents, he was lost. He mourned and learned to deal with the anger the best way Bruce taught him. He learned meditation, martial arts, and studied every book Bruce put in front of him. Of course he had times when he didn’t listen, but it was never about not caring about Bruce or not wanting him around. In fact, he didn’t want anything to happen so that he’d lose Bruce too.

“Maybe you weren’t clear on exactly how free I could be…”

“But you were anyway. You didn’t avoid men just because I-”

“Yes, I know that.” Dick took breath. “I just wish you told me is all. It would’ve made it easier.”

The greatest detective in the world and he didn’t know his own son liked men. All that time with Barbara and Starfire really threw Bruce off. He wondered if they knew. Maybe they could explain to him why Dick was so afraid of telling him. He understood the anger and avoidance a little more, but initially not talking to him was surprising.

“I’m sorry.” Trust was important to Bruce and if he couldn’t trust his own son when he was in his 20s, what kind of father was he anyway?

Dick sighed, exhausted by the conversation. “It’s fine, B. It’s really not as big of a deal as I’m making it. I just wanted…”

“I know.”

Dick gave Bruce a genuine smile.

Bruce gave Dick a matching one in return.

❖❖❖

It was their fourth time hanging out together since that angry morning in Bruce’s office and they still hadn’t been able to use the condom or lube Bruce was carrying around. It frustrated them both. They were always busy with their jobs that kept odd hours while also saving people. It didn’t help that Bruce had ten thousand kids. Thankfully, only two were living under his roof at the moment, but they were still a handful. All of these interruptions seemed to have multiplied since the two got together. And it was grating on their nerves. Which was why tonight was purposefully planned to be kid-free, case-free, and nowhere near either of their houses. That way neither of them could be found unless by comm and that meant there was a real emergency.

They started their evening off in a discreet restaurant that knew Bruce well. It was a little fancy for Clark’s taste, but he enjoyed himself. He’d never had meat so tender before and may have exaggerated his moans while he ate to get a rise out of Bruce. Clark got a glare that emanated death and responded with a cheeky grin.

Clark almost choked on a piece of warm buttered bread when he felt a foot graze the inside of his thigh. He kicked Bruce’s other foot in warning. That was when Bruce placed his foot directly on Clark’s crotch. It wasn’t quite pushing down, but touching just enough so Clark could feel the foot that slipped out of Bruce’s five hundred dollar shoes to fondle him.

Clark was speaking to the server about having bit of extra sauce brought out when Bruce curled his toes and pressed down just enough with his foot to get Clark to stutter and pause in the middle of a word to prevent himself from gasping. Heat rose to his cheeks as he finished the rest of his request and turned a glare on Bruce. Luckily, the server was polite enough not to comment, probably very well trained in a place like this.

“You’re going to regret that,” Clark promised.

Bruce merely smirked.

“Apple pie? Is this even on the menu?” Clark was surprised when he saw the plate being brought to the table half an hour later. Bruce must have planned this beforehand because they hadn’t ordered dessert yet. It was also shocking to see such a plain and common slice of pie in this schmoozy place.

“I thought you’d like a taste of home.” Bruce nodded for Clark to try a bite.

Clark took a generous fork of apple, crust, and whipped cream. The moment it touched Clark’s tongue Bruce knew the moan that escaped him this time wasn’t on purpose. Clark was going to kill him.

“What?” Clark seemed to be oblivious of what happened, staring with wide eyes at Bruce’s frustration. Until he started licking every crumb off of that fork with slow strokes starting at the base of the fork going up.

“That’s it.” Bruce threw down a wad of cash on the counter and grabbed Clark’s arm. “We’re out of here.”

Clark actually pouted. He may have been messing around, but he really did want to finish that pie. That particular groan was actually from the taste, not from teasing. He stopped walking suddenly forcing Bruce to stumble gently back against his chest. Clark placed his hands on Bruce’s hips and pulled him back. Placing his lips against Bruce’s ear, Clark murmured, “Be patient. I want this.” Bruce shuddered. “I want this… but I want my pie.” And he turned around to ask for a to-go box. Clark bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. Bruce would never forgive him for that.

Bruce leaned on the wall just inside the front doors when Clark finished. Clark saw the grumpy man and stifled another laugh. He took Bruce’s hand and did the tugging this time. They stepped outside into the crisp night air and saw Alfred turning the corner onto their street. Clark smiled and waved.

“He can see us you know,” Bruce grumbled.

With a fond a smile, Clark squeezed Bruce’s hand and brought it up to his lips. He heard Bruce’s heart stutter before the annoying man took a breath and slowed it down again. He was going to have to get Bruce out of the habit of doing that around him. He wanted to hear everything, to notice every reaction.

A phone rang just as the car pulled up. Bruce frowned and answered it and got in the car.

“What is it? I told you I’m busy tonight.”

When the call ended, Clark sighed. “I’ll head back to Metropolis tonight then.”

Apparently, Tim had gotten himself into a situation when he ran into Jason during a mission. The two wouldn’t stop bickering and got Tim taken by the enemy. Obviously neither wanted to ask for help, but Tim was smart enough to do it the moment he had the chance. That left Jason probably getting ready to do something dangerous to save his little brother, so Bruce had to hurry.

Bruce frowned further. “Stay. I’ll come to bed later.”

It wasn’t a good idea. Clark had an early day tomorrow. Yeah, he could get to Metropolis and be ready to go in a few seconds, but he had some work he wanted to get done if he wasn’t going to be able to do Bruce.

Bruce grimaced, “Did you really just say that?”

“Sorry,” Clark laughed.

The sun was bright and the birds were happy. Clark was ready to go and actually ahead on work for once. He got in some research, finished a fluff piece, and had an early night. It wasn’t a surprise that the office was bustling. After all, it was beautiful out. It’d definitely be pleasant to do field work. What was a bit surprising was all of the greetings Clark got on his way up to the office. He even ran across a few winks and wolf whistles.

When he got to his floor, he made a beeline to Lois the moment he saw that clean brunette bun on the back of her head.

“Lois.” Clark tapped her on the shoulder. “What the hell is going on?”

Lois turned around with a start and grabbed his arms firmly. “You!”

“Me?”

“Yes you. How dare you.” Lois slapped the morning paper down in front of him and crossed her arms, tapping her foot impatiently.

_Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent CAUGHT! Sleeping for Stories or is it True Love?_

__

__

_Our very own Daily Planet reporter Clark Kent was caught smooching Mister Billionaire Playboy Bruce Wayne outside of La Nourriture D'amour. Sources say that they were under the guise of an interview but were really out on their very first date. Both men..._

Reading the rest wasn’t worth it. It was clear garbage. The only part that spoke the truth was the photograph halfway down the page. It was of the men’s fingers intertwined, Clark touching his lips to the back of Bruce’s hand. Neither taking their eyes off each other. The slight pink to Clark’s cheeks was clearly visible and the intensity of their stares was in plain sight for all of Metropolis and Gotham to see. Clark’s face heated as he looked at the image. He couldn’t believe how obvious his feelings were. His face screamed how much he loved Bruce Wayne and now everyone could see it.

Jimmy walked by with a, “Congratulations!” while Clark was still staring at the photo.

It was difficult to process having your love life in the paper for the first time, but Lois didn’t care at that moment. She glanced around the room and leaned in close to hiss, “So Smallville, when were you going to tell me that tall, dark and creepy was Bruce Wayne?”

“Huh?” Clark was absolutely flustered. He couldn’t comprehend what was happening. All of the smirks and shoulder pats weren’t helping. Wait, what did Lois just say?

“God, you’re slow today. Snap out of it, Smallville! I need some details now so I can help you before Perry finds out you’re here.”

“Kent! You better have a good explanation for this,” Perry shouted. The man was stalking over and Clark was panicking.

“Well sir, this article isn’t exactly accurate,” Clark tried to clarify.

“How much is true?”

“None of it-”

“So you’re not dating Wayne?”

Clark ran a nervous hand through his hair. “No! I mean, yes. Yes, I’m dating Bruce but everything else-”

“Son of a bitch.” Perry looked like he was almost as surprised as Clark. He just had more time to absorb the initial shock of seeing the article. “Alright, Kent. I want the truth on my desk by the end of the day. You can’t write the article, but we sure as hell are going to be the first ones to get the truth.”

“Boss,” Lois interjected, “Don’t you think it’s a good idea to give Clark some time to think this over? No one’s going to get the truth because neither of them will ever talk to the press. I’m sure if Wayne said anything, Clark would dump him anyway.”

Thank _Rao_ for Lois. This situation needed to be handled delicately. And it couldn’t be handled without talking to Bruce. Time was exactly what Clark needed. He needed to process this first, then talk to Bruce and figure out a plan.

Perry hummed and nodded, “Fine. No interview, no comments. I don’t even want any ‘no comments.’ And don’t let anyone else catch you two!”

Clark smiled, grateful. Perry wasn’t a bad boss, he was just passionate about his work. That’s why the Planet was so successful. And he was protective of his employees despite what anyone said. One reason to put the article in the Planet was definitely because it’d be the most accurate and lenient to what Bruce and Clark wanted in it.

Perry yelled at everyone to get back to work before returning to his office, leaving Clark to figure out what the hell he should do now. Call Bruce. Right. He picked up his phone and was about to call when Lois asked him a question.

“Does your mom know?”

_Shit. Ma!_

Clark was going to buy Lois an entire cake. Her inquisitive attitude was honestly one of her best qualities. So sharp and on her feet even in stressful situations. Granted this didn’t really have to do with her, however she was still great in tough situations.

Before Clark could decide who to call first, Lois tapped him on the shoulder. Her voice was softer this time, gentle. “Hey, look at me.” She smiled. “Congrats on having the balls to get him. And don’t worry. No one will ever know.”

It took a moment to process her comment. And despite it not needing to be said, Clark was grateful. He took her hand in his and squeezed. “I know. Thank you.” Bruce was not going to be happy that Lois knew who he was. But it was inevitable honestly. She was the best investigative reporter in the country. It’d be worrying if she couldn’t connect the dots.

  
  


In an abandoned building a few cities over, the man pictured the neighbors screaming at him to shut up while he laughed. The laugh grew louder and a few lilts were added to it as the man became more excited. The morning paper fell to the floor when he stood up from the couch. It’d been a while since he’d had good ammunition like this. He needed to poke at someone big to get the city’s untamable pet to come and play.

❖❖❖

Going on a tour of LexCorp probably wasn’t the smartest idea he’d ever had, but Clark was fed up. The guy hadn’t done one of these in forever so there was bound to be a reason to start again now. Everyone knew Lex was working on a project but no one was sure what the specifics were. Which is why it was very difficult to get into this particular tour. Clark was surprised he got entry, honestly. He was the only reporter here. Maybe Lex was going to make an announcement and wanted the Daily Planet to cover it. Lex and Clark were old friends but that friendship died long ago; Clark didn’t see why Lex would choose him.

So far, they’d had someone working for Lex showing them around. Most were interested in what was happening at the facility, but they also wanted to get a glimpse of Mr. Luthor and possibly shake his hand. They were getting antsy and it was clear. After about thirty minutes of walking in circles, the group came to a large room full of machines. It looked like a factory of some sort. And the machines… They looked like a version of the stolen equipment from Japan.

_What the hell?_

“Welcome! I’m glad you could make it,” announced a dramatic voice.

All heads turned to the bald man in the clean grey-striped suit. He shook hands and explained what was happening. While Clark tried to reel in the accusing glare, Lex got the crowd hyped about getting a close look at the machines. He led them down from the balcony after a short explanation of safety procedures. Everyone was oo-ing and aah-ing at the machines while one of the engineers explained the project. Clark noticed Lex wasn’t wearing the Kryptonite ring.

Eventually Lex homed in on him, “Why Mr. Kent, you haven’t asked a single question today.”

“I want the full Metropolis public experience,” Clark said, quick to cover up his bad mood. Lex was an enemy of Superman, not Clark Kent.

“Nonsense! You can’t write a good article like that. Come take a look.” Lex put an arm around Clark’s shoulders and guided him to one of the instruments.

“They look familiar. Where did you get the idea from?”

“Oh, from those stolen prototypes from Japan. Do you remember that scandal?” His smile never faltered. “The design was just inspiring. I couldn’t say no to making something similar. The Japanese know their stuff when it comes to technology. What do you think? Go ahead, take a look.”

It was so close to the truth it hurt to not just call him out immediately. So Clark grit his teeth and leaned over, taking a look at the details; the levers, the needle, the tubes. He didn’t quite understand how they worked but he didn’t need to. He knew they were bad business. Especially when he noticed he couldn’t get a clear look inside. There seemed to be a blank section of lead blocking off a small portion of the machine from Clark’s eyes.

“How does this part work?” Clark pointed to one of the tubes that seemed to be connected to that censored section.

“I’m glad you asked!” Lex began explaining the mechanisms of the chemicals mixing in a safe environment before they were expelled from the end of the tube. He took the end and pointed it up to face both him and Clark. The end looked like a combination of a hose and a showerhead. Clark tried to get a look inside the tube, but he couldn’t see inside it for some reason either. Before Clark could ask if there was anything inside the appliance, a substance suddenly sprayed into Clark’s face. He immediately coughed and threw himself backwards.

He almost fell, but Lex caught him. He supported his weight and started talking to the other guests. He couldn’t quite make out the words, but knew that he was being led away from everyone. Lex took him to a private room near the back of the building. It had a small table, a couple of chairs, and a mini refrigerator in it.

“I’m sorry about that, old friend. But once I knew, I couldn’t do nothing.” It was the clearest memory Clark had of the whole ordeal.

“Y-you… How…” Clark coughed again, trying desperately to breath as his lungs constricted.

“Did you think I wouldn’t find out who you are? Though that was clever, staying right under my nose for this long.” Clark gasped loud and ugly. “Oh don’t be so dramatic. You’ll be fine. Your body should clear out the kryptonite soon. It’s this you should be worried about.”

Clark tried desperately to scramble away when he felt the familiar sensation of kryptonite nearby. Something stronger than the gas in his lungs was close. There was a tray in the fridge filled with vials of a bright green liquid. Clark tried to lift an arm to punch Lex, but he just laughed.

“Now, now, settle down.” Lex held Clark’s arm steady just long enough to prick his skin with the needle.

The poison spread up his arm quickly. Clark froze with tension at the shock of the pain. His throat closed up and suddenly he was writhing, squirming, screaming with discomfort. It felt like his veins were being turned into stone. His leg accidentally hit the leg of the table, causing a giant bruise to begin to develop. But Clark didn’t even feel it. It was nothing compared the liquid turning his body into fire.

Eventually Clark calmed down enough to just breath heavily through the burning. He blinked his eye rapidly at the drip of sweat that fell into it. Lex murmured dry encouragement and hauled Clark half onto his back, dragging him to a back door. It opened into an alleyway with a van.

“Take him to Gotham. The coordinates have been sent to you. _Don’t_ screw this up.”

The men nodded and discussed a few more things with Lex before shutting Clark in the van. The last thing Clark remembered before he blacked out was that the men were wearing jerseys with the letter “m” on them.

Waking up was slow. Clark blinked rapidly to try and get rid of the blurriness, but it came and went. He looked around the room, taking slow shallow breaths. It was large. There seemed to be something pointed at him. It looked like a giant gun. Clark noticed that he was tied to a wooden chair with rope. He would have laughed but he couldn’t even lift his arms to attempt to pull at his bindings. His neck ached with the effort to lift it and he couldn’t get his eyes to focus anyway, so he let it droop back down. That was when he noticed the chair was resting on a giant playing card. It was a king of hearts.

He didn’t cringe when he realized, because he couldn’t, but he clenched the muscles he _could_ move when he heard a nasty laugh drawing closer.

“Oh goooood. You’re awake. I was afraid you were going to miss the show, Clarky!”

Joker grinned wide and flipped a few switches around the room. Clark squinted hard to see what was happening. The only difference he noticed was that the gun now had a red light on it before Joker stepped in front of him, facing the giant weapon.

“Welcome Gotham, to Joker’s Game Night! Tonight’s contestant is Clark Kent. The Big Shot Metropolis reporter who was recently discovered to be bedding our very own Bruce Wayne!” Joker turned to Clark. “Tell us, Mr. Kent, Gotham needs to know, how is Mr. Wayne in bed, hmm?” He put the mic up to Clark’s face and laughed loud and hysteric.


	7. Chapter 7

The press conference was a sudden decision, but so many people were hounding him about the relationship, Bruce decided he couldn’t wait for Clark. They briefly discussed that a public explanation would have to happen at some point. He texted Clark to let him know it was happening soon so if he wanted to be there, he was welcome to. However, it was less of an obligation since Clark wasn’t a public figure like Bruce.

The moment Bruce walked out, the flashes and questions started. He held up a hand and gave everyone a nice picturesque smile. Once the reporters settled down, he stepped up to the podium.

“Thank you for joining me this afternoon. I’m sure you all have many questions since that photograph of Clark and I was released.” He ignored the murmurs at the use of Clark’s first name. “Clark and I are happily together and have been for a few weeks now.”

It was short and to the point, exactly what Bruce and his PR rep wanted. The questions from the press were pretty tame. They asked how the two got together and the credibility of Clark’s interviews of Bruce. That first one was answered with a simple crude remark of the two flirting and having some fun before they agreed to go on a date. Bruce’s cheesy grin made some of the audience laugh and others roll their eyes. It was a typical response, and some weren’t sure they believed him. Despite his reputation, the public could tell that this relationship was something more than his flings.

The disbelieving looks around the room at Bruce’s crass story only widened his smile further. Which was funny because it was actually exactly how it happened. Some minor details such as fake drunk office sex may have been left out of the story, but otherwise he actually wasn’t lying. Clark would probably kill him for that but he had to keep up appearances. He wasn’t a different Brucie Wayne, just one with feelings for someone instead of feelings for _parts_ of someone. It had happened before so the media wasn’t necessarily surprised.

Right when the questions were about to be cut off, a local Gotham reporter jumped up in his seat and almost yelled, “Mr. Wayne! What are you doing about this?!” and held up a small, portable screen, turning up the volume as loud as possible.

Bruce couldn’t hear exactly what was being said, but he recognized a laugh he hadn’t heard in months. He tensed while someone nearby put the broadcast on a larger TV in the room. Everyone gasped as they saw Joker dancing around an absolutely ragged looking Clark Kent.

Bruce’s heart almost stopped as he took in the bags under Clark’s eyes and the sweat running down the sides of his face and his body, soaking his shirt. Every few seconds, Clark would twitch, disrupting his already ragged breaths. Everyone screamed questions at Bruce now, but he didn’t hear a single word, didn’t even notice it was happening. He finally snapped out of it when Clark gave a particularly harsh cough. Blood spat out of his mouth and seeped into his lap.

Someone was trying to lead Bruce away and he finally let them drag him off to the side. But he didn’t leave quite yet, not when he saw Lois Lane trying to catch his eye while arguing with security about seeing Bruce.

“Ms. Lane,” Bruce said behind the officers, “I believe we will have to reschedule our interview.”

“What do you think, Mr. Wayne?” Joker could be heard from the screen. “How long will it take the Batman to find him? Or do you think your cops can do it? We’re down to a jack of hearts. That’s ten cards to go for sick Mr. Kent over here!” Joker laughed.

Lois looked Bruce in the eyes and nodded. “With Clark.” The words came out rough.

Bruce nodded in return and allowed himself to be escorted inside. The press conference was in front a hotel he often frequented. He had an interview planned with Lois after the press conference, giving her an exclusive on the media’s favorite new relationship to gossip about. Of course, they all knew the reaction the public would have to Lois writing the article would be huge, so that made Perry happy with the arrangement. He also trusted Lois to be professional, which would in turn protect Clark because his ex was writing a positive article about him. Perry was a hothead and passionate, but he had a heart.

It took a while, but security was able to push through anyone who had the gall to try and talk to Bruce. They took him to his regular penthouse suite, which was frustrating because it was on the top floor and Bruce needed to get out of there without being seen.

He called Alfred who said he was on his way, but that wasn’t going to be fast enough. The Batmobile couldn’t just drive by a bunch of reporters, and he’d be seen climbing out a window in broad daylight and when they all knew he was in the building.

To his luck, there was a commotion outside the door. He opened it to see Lois arguing with the security guards again. How she even got into the building, Bruce had no idea.

“You’re persistent, Ms. Lane. I thought we agreed to reschedule.”

“Your butler is downstairs but he can’t get close enough to the building to let you know he’s here.”

Bruce raised a brow at that. The guards were smart, so he’d have to play this right. He made a show of taking his phone out of his pocket and cursing. “Damn, my phone must’ve died. Alright, Ms. Lane, lead the way.”

One of the guards spoke up, “Sir, we don’t recommend-”

“I’ll have the boys downstairs escort me to the car, don’t worry. You staying here will make people think I’m still in the room.”

After a bit more discussion, the guards agreed with the plan. Good thing both Lois and Bruce were quick-witted. Lois quickly led Bruce downstairs to the hotel’s backdoor that led to an alleyway with a large and very full dumpster. Lois wrinkled her nose at the smell.

“I don’t know how you’re going to get your fancy car here without anyone noticing but-” Lois stopped herself mid-sentence when she saw the brick wall connecting the two buildings open up and a sleek black car shoot out. “Holy…” It was one thing to discover the truth, it was another to see it in person. When she turned around, Bruce was in uniform and ready to go.

Bruce walked up to her and extended his hand for her to shake. “Thank you,” he said in his gravelly voice.

Lois shook his hand and said, “Just hurry.”

When he sped away she shook her head and sighed. “I’m going to kill Clark myself when he gets out of there,” she mumbled. _Not only does he not tell me he’s best friends with Bruce Wayne, but he doesn’t tell me Batman has built his own secret city inside Gotham for his car to find him like a track dog with superspeed._

  
  


Clark groaned as Joker ruffled his hair. The motion shook his head too much, which made him nauseated. He hadn’t thrown up on Joker yet, but it was a near thing. If the clown didn’t stop poking him, Clark was going to hurl, and then Joker would have another reason to torture him. If he was being honest, what was really torturing Clark was the drug in his veins, not the taunting from Joker. Despite the pain, he was a bit confused as to why Joker hadn’t used other methods to torment him.

Joker laughed. He took Clark’s chin in his hand and frowned. “What did he give you, anyway? It’s less fun if you’re not going to play.”

Clark coughed then, spitting blood on Joker’s face. Normally, people did things like that in defiance, but this was by complete accident. Clark was sure he was dying. He was covered in bruises from being roughhoused on the way here, and they seemed bad even for a human. His fingers and toes tingled with the beginnings of a numbing sensation, while his throat felt so raw from coughing he was sure he’d blow a hole in it soon. And his mouth tasting like copper didn’t help the nausea any. Besides all of that, he was in excruciating pain. He felt weak, and he could feel himself growing weaker, his body breaking down from the inside. 

“That’s more like it!” Joker seemed ecstatic to be covered in splatters of blood from Clark’s lungs.

The scream came unexpectedly when Joker smacked Clark in retaliation for his rude cough. The blow snapped Clark’s neck to the side roughly, allowing Clark to fully feel the pain all throughout his spine that he didn’t notice before. It was difficult to single out everything the poison was affecting.

His head lolled to the side, but to Clark, it felt like he was swimming. His dizziness increased tenfold and he started to see black spots. No amount of blinking cleared his eyesight, even temporarily. Clark shivered, suddenly extremely cold despite the sweat covering his body. His body convulsed and the last thing he remembered was Joker patting his head sarcastically while talking to the ~~gun~~ camera, before he passed out.

The next thing Clark remembered was waking up to the sound of screaming. It didn’t take long for him to pass out again.

  
  


Everyone was disappointed when the feed of the crime cut off the moment Joker greeted Batman. Bruce immediately blew up the control panel and destroyed Joker’s camera and mic. He was never in the mood for Joker’s games but especially not today. Before Joker could even get out a proper sentence about how disappointed he was that his show was off the air, Bruce lunged.

The two fought, punching, kicking. Bruce didn’t dodge any hits. Instead, he blocked all of them, grunting through the force, and immediately pushed back. He wasn’t in the mood for any kind of passiveness. One push was timed perfectly enough to fling Joker back into a card house he built while trying to entertain Gotham until Batman arrived.

“Have I finally drove Batman batty?” Joker laughed, noticing the extra force to his punches. The laugh abruptly stopped when Bruce fisted Joker’s shirt and started whaling on him. Punch after punch after punch. The man deserved to die, deserved to bleed out on the floor.

Bruce stopped punching when he heard a wet cough behind him.

“He… Stop…” Clark forced out through the blooding dripping from his lips, almost pouring by this point.

Bruce dropped the clown on top of his broken card house and rushed to Clark’s side. He had been so distracted by his anger he almost forgot to get Clark out of there. His heart ached when he took in Clark’s appearance. He’d seen the man injured before, tired even, but never like this. Never looking like a man with an incurable disease just waiting to die.

When Bruce turned around to at least tie Joker up, the clown was gone. The coward left everything and ran for it. Bruce punched the floor in frustration, taking a minute to breathe before untying Clark.

“I’m sorry,” he said roughly. “I’m so sorry.”

Clark slumped into Bruce’s arms going in and out of consciousness. “S’k,” he mumbled. “Gla’... gla’ yu h’re…” Before he could pass out for a lengthy period of time again, Bruce asked him what happened. All he heard from his mumbles were, “Li’wid… Krrr… yp’t… Liq’id kryp…”

Bruce cursed when he finally understood. What the hell kind of game was Luthor playing at, playing with different forms of Kryptonite? And now he knew Superman’s identity. This was extremely dangerous and exactly what Bruce was afraid would happen.

“Br… Brce!”

Bruce held Clark close to his chest murmuring for him to hush.

“L’ve yu…”

❖❖❖

The beeping of a heart monitor and a very bright light woke Clark up. He squinted and tried to lift his hand up in front of his face. He put it back down when he realized how exhausted his muscles were. Clark looked around and noticed water on the table beside his bed. He reached out but couldn’t quite get a grip on the cup.

A hand lifted his head up gently and brought the cup to Clark’s lips. He tried to take large gulps but almost choked. His throat still hurt and more than the muscles in his arms were tired.

“Easy there,” a gentle voice said.

When Clark finally looked up, he saw the most beautiful sight he’d seen in a while. “Bruce.” His voice cracked halfway through the name and he frowned.

“At least you can talk now. You were having a lot more trouble earlier. How many times do I have to tell you Clark, stay away from any glowing rocks.” Bruce gave Clark a smile despite his sad eyes.

Bruce took Clark’s hand in his and laced their fingers together. Clark tapped the back of Bruce’s hand with the tips of his fingers since he didn’t have the strength for much else. Bruce squeezed back hard. Clark could actually feel how hard Bruce was squeezing. It almost hurt.

“Hey,” Clark said, “Everythin’s okay.”

Bruce kissed the back of Clark’s hand and nodded.

“It will be. Luthor’s on trial.” Bruce’s entire demeanor changed; from the remorse and the almost-tears of Clark’s to the business-like Batman.

“What?!” Clark tried to sit up but fell back against the bed, still in pain if he moved too much or too suddenly.

Bruce smirked. “Lois published an article about how Luthor was using stolen, untested technology to create drugs and administer them secretly to the Metropolis Meteors, using them as test subjects.” Bruce practically grinned at Clark’s astonished face. Clark knew about the machines, but he was kidnapped before he could tell anyone anything. “The boys on the team feel very guilty about what happened. Apparently, they helped Luthor lock you in a van and take you to Gotham. They don’t remember much, thankfully. Just enough to testify against that lunatic. His obsession with you really went too far this time.”

Clark couldn’t believe it. How long had he been passed out?

“Two weeks.”

The boys from the team were in a special rehab program to get them clean from the green glowing drug. The method was inspired by what the Justice League found while trying to save Clark. If there were no lasting effects, and there didn’t seem like there would be, the boys should be able to play again in a few months. Clark’s recovery on the other hand depended on how much sunlight he’d need. Soon, they wouldn’t be able to inject him with the antidote anymore and his body would have to heal on its own.

“Why do I need an antidote?”

“It’s literally poison, Clark. Some sunlight and dialysis isn’t enough. Apparently, Luthor wasn’t getting the effects he wanted on his guinea pigs so Joker helped him out in exchange for ‘a chance to mess with the richest and most influential man in Gotham.’”

It turned out that the drug made the boys temporarily stronger, think Hulk-strong, before Luthor got Joker’s version of the drug. That was when the boys started having negative effects. That’s when Luthor decided to test it out on Clark. No one had any idea how Lex found out Superman’s identity and that worried Clark.

Clark clenched his hand nervously.

“Don’t worry, there’s no way he won’t be locked up. And it seems like he’s uninterested in telling anyone who you are for now,” Bruce informed him.

Clark let out a relieved sigh, “Okay.”

When he looked down, Clark noticed he wasn’t wearing any clothes. Usually, they’d leave him in his boxer briefs while he charged up on the lights, but not this time. Clark couldn’t help the flush that came to his cheeks.

“Um, Bruce?”

“Yeah?”

“Why am I naked?”

They’ve seen each other naked plenty of time before, but it was a little different to be laying on a bed, nude and helpless, literally not able to move, while someone stared at you.

“You were dying, Clark.”

“Okay, but now I’m not.”

Bruce smirked as he deliberately eyed up Clark’s body. The pink in Clark’s cheeks spread to his chest as he watched Bruce watch him. His cock twitched and Bruce leered. He couldn’t believe despite all the discomfort and aches in his body he wanted to jump Bruce right there.

  
  


One month later and Clark was almost completely healed. Thanks to his abilities, he was getting better faster than the Meteors. People simply speculated that was because of all of the experiments on the boys and the long-term injections. Speculation could sometimes be very useful to any hero.

In Clark’s time recovering, he was able to catch up with his mom and finally tell her about Bruce. She scolded him for calling so late and Clark winced when she reminded him she’d like to be told as much news as she could from Clark first.

Despite the fact that Clark was able to use his powers without wavering and continuously saved people over the past two weeks despite the disapproval of pretty much the entire League, Bruce wouldn’t put out. And Clark was beyond frustrated. Bruce gave Clark a few handjobs and went down on him enough times, but Clark hadn’t touched Bruce yet and had been forced on his back every single time he initiated something. That was the other thing; Clark was always the one initiating. And if Clark even thought about arguing, Bruce would leave abruptly, no matter how far gone Clark was. He’d just have to lie there frustrated or get himself off. He couldn’t count the last time he’d masturbated this much in such a short period of time.

Clark and Bruce were watching a movie with Tim and Damian when the opportunity presented itself. Or, Bruce was so hot in his black button down with the sleeves rolled up, and the jeans that hugged the curve of his ass in just the right places that Clark couldn’t help but put his hand onto Bruce’s thigh.

Bruce had told Damian and Tim about the relationship already but still wanted to be discreet around them. Especially Damian. That boy did not need more on Clark to complain about.

Clark and Bruce were sitting on the couch while the boys were bundled up on the floor with some blankets and pillows. Damian complained about wasting their night away up until the movie started. It seemed that Damian liked action. Surprise, surprise.

Bruce accepted the warmth on his leg and put his own hand on top of Clark’s, rubbing the back of Clark’s hand with his thumb. Clark smiled and couldn’t help but squeeze Bruce’s leg. Bruce made him so happy and Clark was aching for it.

_I don’t think I’ve ever been so worked up in my life. Even when I learned I had heat vision._

“Clark,” Bruce muttered a warning. Apparently, Clark unconsciously moved his hand up Bruce’s thigh to lay dangerously close to Bruce’s crotch. Bruce took Clark’s wrist and placed his hand back on the couch in between them, grabbing hold of Clark’s hand tightly, a silent insistence he stay in place.

Clark lifted his foot and toed up the edge of Bruce’s pant leg with his socked foot. Bruce was not impressed. He stomped his foot down over Clark’s. If Clark wasn’t human _or hadn’t recovered yet_ , Clark emphasized in his mind, that would have at least bruised him if not given him a fracture. If Bruce had used that much force, he had to know Clark was better, right? Well enough for sex maybe?

 _Please,_ Clark silently pleaded.

Bruce watched the movie resolutely, determined to ignore Clark’s cries for attention. He’d explained to Clark a thousand times that they needed to wait until Clark was completely healed. But the horny bastard was impatient and it was trying on Bruce’s nerves. He didn’t know how much longer he could last.

Everyone enjoyed the movie with no distractions for a few minutes until Clark decided to lay his head on Bruce’s shoulder. A seemingly innocent gesture, but Bruce knew better. He allowed the action to happen with caution. No hands wandered on legs or chests, so that was good.

But then Bruce felt warm breath on his neck. He didn’t have time to react before sharp teeth bit down gentle enough not to cause a mark, but hard enough to cause a surprised gasp to slip from his lips. Thankfully, the kids were enamored with the movie and didn’t turn around, but Bruce still shoved Clark back with a firm glare. Clark wasn’t discouraged. In fact, he seemed more determined than ever.

Clark flung one leg up to slide onto Bruce’s lap.

“The kids,” Bruce hissed in his ear, but Clark paid him no mind.

Clark’s hands slipped up Bruce’s shirt, pulling tight against the buttons. Bruce grabbed Clark’s wrists and pulled uselessly while, for once, Clark fought back.

“Not today, Mr. Wayne.” Clark licked his lips. He took Bruce’s wrists into his own hands and pinned them down underneath his legs on either side of Bruce.

The movie played on loudly in the background while Clark popped Bruce’s shirt open one button at a time. The buttons flew randomly throughout the room while Bruce struggled to keep his breathing even and not alert the boys. When Clark came in to lick up his ear, he shuddered.

“Damn it, Clark, the kids,” Bruce tried again to protest.

Clark ignored him and kissed down the side of his jaw to his lips. He kissed him hard and slow, making sure to feel every soft curve of those lips. Bruce kissed back despite the situation. He couldn’t help it. He hadn’t had Clark on top of him or felt that forceful tongue in months. Clark slipped his tongue into Bruce’s mouth and that was when Bruce forgot everything. He didn’t struggle when Clark’s hands slipped under his shirt again. They moved easily, feeling as much of Bruce as they could. The pull of the shirt got tighter and tighter until more buttons flew off, one after the other.

“What the hell? Oh-ew, c’mon guys. I can’t pretend I don’t know what you’re doing when it’s raining buttons,” Tim complained.

Clark quickly pulled back, sheepish at actually being caught. Bruce gave him a look that said, _Well what did you think would happen?_

“Sorry,” Clark said weakly, unwilling to face the boys.

Damian gagged exaggeratedly as Tim and him fled from the room, complaining loudly down the hall about public spaces and gross dads. Clark’s face was now pressed into Bruce’s neck. He was shaking from embarrassed laughter. Bruce rubbed Clark’s back gently now that his hands were free. Moments like these warmed Bruce’s heart. They made him want to kiss Clark’s head fondly over and over again.

“That apology was for you too, you know,” Clark said. He pulled back to look at Bruce’s face. “Tell me you don’t want me and I’ll stop.”

“You know that’s not what this is about,” Bruce sighed.

“That’s the only way I’ll stop.” Clark wouldn’t take no for an answer. He was going to out-stubborn Bruce once and for all.

They were both tired of waiting, this waiting game was useless. Really, if Clark was a little sore, what harm would it do? It wasn’t like he wouldn’t feel it the next day if he was human. Besides, he didn’t feel any pain whatsoever. He just needed a couple more days under as much sun as possible and he’d be good to go. It was so difficult trying to make Bruce understand that. The only thing Bruce would allow besides pleasuring Clark was dates, handholding, brief kisses, and cuddling. Usually Bruce would spoon Clark too, because if he didn’t, Clark would start feeling him up and Bruce said he didn’t need more temptation than he already had. When Clark said, “Then give in!” Bruce just laughed.

Well there wasn’t going to be laughing today. They were going fuck and Bruce was going to come and he was going to enjoy it whether he wanted to or not.

“What was that?”

 _Crap. Must’ve said that out loud._ “Umm…”

“Clark?”

Something in Bruce’s expression convinced Clark to repeat the words, no matter how embarrassed he was. “I’m going to fuck you, you’re going to come, and you’re going to like it.”

Bruce let out an unsteady breath and closed his eyes, forehead wrinkling as his brows furrowed. Clark let a slow smile come to his face. This. This was new. He watched Bruce happily until the man opened his eyes. Bruce glared when he saw Clark’s grin. Clark was going to wreck this man.

With a deliberate lick of his lips, Clark slid back into Bruce’s body and grabbed his wrists again, this time pinning them with one hand against the top of the couch. Bruce’s shirt fell open while he arched his back against the couch. Clark’s mouth went dry at the sight. Bruce’s swollen lips, ripped shirt, red neck, gasping and writhing underneath him.

Clark undid Bruce’s pants at superspeed so he could pull out his cock. He took a moment to lick his lips at the sight before standing up and forcing Bruce to turn over to lie down along the length of the couch. Clark nearly came right there. Bruce was on all fours, ass in the air and waiting to be touched.

Clark took out a bottle of lube he’d been carrying around just in case Bruce finally had some sense. Without warning, he slipped one finger inside Bruce, watching the digit disappear into the soft, pink hole. Bruce cried out and clenched at the sudden intrusion but easily relaxed to Clark’s gentle kisses on his ass and the slow movements of his finger.

Two fingers, then quickly three were added. Bruce wasn’t as tight as Clark thought he’d be. The thought of Bruce doing this to himself to the thought of them together made something click inside Clark. He was desperate before, but now Earth being invaded by aliens couldn’t stop him.

He quickly pulled down his own pants and leaned against Bruce’s back to moan in his ear and feel the warm body shiver under him. He held his cock against Bruce’s entrance and enjoyed the feel of Bruce twitching around him, pushing back unconsciously before Clark drove in. Clark growled at the pleasure and Bruce whined. It was almost painful, waiting for Clark to move. Bruce needed Clark to move _now_. He didn’t need time to adjust.

“Clark, please,” Bruce begged. He was so hard. He’d probably be upset about leaking all over his couch later. Right now, he had a cock to take.

Bruce started undulating his hips as best he could from his position when Clark shushed him with a hand to his lower back. “No. Tonight is about you. I’m going to take care of you.”

With that, Clark began to thrust. Both of them moved together, desperate not to lose the friction, the tension in their bodies. Clark pulled Bruce’s leg back, maneuvering him onto his side while keeping hold of the leg. When he thrust back in, Bruce made a startled sound at the sudden intensity of the feeling. From this angle, Clark reached deeper and was able to watch Bruce’s face, scrunched in concentration, covered in sweat, making noises Clark didn’t know the man could make.

The coil in Bruce’s abdomen built steadily, increasing his desire to finish. His breaths were more labored and his cock bounced against his stomach, teasing him with the light touches. Clark reach down and with one, two, three strokes, Bruce convulsed, spilling over himself and the couch. Clark felt Bruce shudder and opened his eyes to watch. Clark could feel his own pleasure building. His hips moved faster as he watched the cum dry on his hands. Bruce cried out from oversensitivity and Clark groaned at the sight. A few more strokes and Clark’s muscles tighten and he shook and spilled himself inside Bruce.

Clark brought his hands to Bruce’s cheeks and kissed him, desperately lazy. He then collapsed on top of Bruce once the man rolled onto his back, immediately regretting the decision when he felt the sticky mess in between them. Bruce shuddered as hot cum leaked out of him. Neither of them moved. Not when Bruce was practically purring from his release. Not when Clark finally gave Bruce what they both needed. Not when Bruce’s fingers were running through Clark’s hair gently, causing Clark to smile.

“We’re going to have to go to the bedroom eventually,” Bruce said, rousing Clark from his postcoital daze.

Bruce laughed when Clark’s face popped into his line of sight; hair sticking up in all directions, clearly drowsy, eyebrows furrowed in annoyance at the stupid suggestion of moving from the perfectly comfortable position.

“A few more minutes couldn’t hurt,” Bruce mumbled. His heart stuttered as Clark beamed down at him before tucking himself back into Bruce’s arms.

❖❖❖

Lois couldn’t help smirking at Clark’s reaction, which of course only infuriated the man more. But who wouldn’t find it funny that reporter Clark Kent’s long-term ex wrote an article on his new relationship and recent outing. In this case, outing didn’t mean a date. _Why couldn’t the article just have focused on the date,_ Clark wondered.

Clark was sitting at his desk looking at a paper from a few weeks ago, wondering how the hell he didn’t know this was happening. Apparently, sometime while Clark was recovering, Lois set up an interview with Bruce. Perry wanted her to get the exclusive on the Kent-Wayne relationship and Bruce happily agreed.

“Shouldn’t I have been there?” Clark choked out.

“Please, you wouldn’t have let me near Gotham if you knew we were going to do that,” Lois snorted.

“Did you have to write this part though?”

Bruce may have expanded upon his public statement in a little too much detail for Clark’s comfort, playing up the fun Brucie Wayne personality.

“Sorry, it’s a quote, Smallville. And one of the more interesting ones, I might add,” she leered.

Clark was still pouting when there was a rumble around the office announcing that Bruce Wayne was in the building. Clark didn’t even look up when Bruce sat on the edge of his desk. Bruce winced when he saw the paper in trash next to Clark’s desk. It was time to come clean. Clark refused to interact with Bruce, which would make apologizing a bit harder. That decision lasted all of five seconds before Clark asked, “Why are you here?”

Bruce’s eyebrows raised in innocent shock. “For our date of course.”

“What date?” Clark didn’t remember making plans with Bruce. It was difficult for him to travel to Metropolis often, even with the excuse of their relationship. He couldn’t leave the burden of Gotham in the hands of his kids too often. The city was still his responsibility and Clark understood that. It was much faster to fly to Bruce whenever they wanted to see each other anyway.

“The date that convinces you to forgive me,” Bruce pulled out a rose from nowhere and offered it to Clark.

Clark rolled his eyes at the gesture before he froze. “How did you know I’d see the article today? Actually, why didn’t I see it the day of? I was awake when it was published.”

Bruce sighed, “I didn’t. It was a complete coincidence you saw it today. I honestly just wanted to surprise you.”

_Oh._

Clark stood up in Bruce’s space. He kissed the man gently on the lips and reddened at the exaggerated catcalling from his coworkers.

“I ‘m still mad at you,” Clark murmured against Bruce’s lips.

“I know it wasn’t the best way to tell you, but Lois asked and I couldn’t avoid answering. She’s persistent.”

“Tell me now,” Clark requested. “And I might forgive you.”

Bruce smiled. “I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I plan on writing more and much better stories.
> 
> I hope you continue spreading the love of Batman and Superman <3


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